History Main / NotInMyBackyard

[[folder:Film]]

* Australian film ''Film/TheCastle'' is an inversion of this trope. The Kerrigans live a few hundred metres from an airport runway. Massive power lines pass right over their backyard. And the Kerrigans love it that way. They only get upset when a planned airport expansion means that they would have to ''move''.

* ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' often run into cases where they have to deal with former child molesters who face this problem when they get out of prison.

* This is the title of ''Series/MidsomerMurders'' episode in which an unpopular real estate development planned for a small village results in murder.
** In "[[Recap/MidsomerMurdersS9E6 Country Matters]]", a group of locals was willing to go to the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Court_of_Human_Rights European Court of Human Rights]] in order to stop a ''supermarket'' from being built in their village.
** In "[[Recap/MidsomerMurdersS18E4 A Dying Art]]", the villagers of Angel's Rise are opposed to the sculpture park and local Brin Dunne has formed VASP (Villagers Against the Sculpture Park).
* In ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', taking Not In My Backyard to its logical extreme, the Malon are a race that never bothered to develop clean ways of disposing of waste, because they simply shipped it all off to somewhere else, a long way away. When Janeway offers a Malon captain a way to neutralize waste safely without hauling it all the way to an empty part of space, she fails to realize that hauling waste is ''his livelihood'', so he naturally rejects her offer (clearly not thinking that he could make a fortune with his new "invention" back home).

* ''Hordes of the Things'' compares the average fantasy world peasant's attitude to magic to the average modern person's attitude to nuclear energy: "I have no direct experience with it, it is sometimes reputedly beneficial, certainly often very nasty, and the further it is from my back yard the better!"

* A version of ''TabletopGame/{{Monopoly}}'' called ''Monopoly City'' has a game mechanic where building unpleasant things, such as sewage treatment plants, can reduce the desirability of nearby locations, with the in-game effect being a reduction in the price of their land and properties on them.

* Present in the ''VideoGame/SimCity'' series, and ''VideoGame/SimCity 3000'' even uses the term by name. Makes sense, as you're playing a city planner.
** This ranges to many things, from the obvious toxic waste dumps, incinerators, and casinos, to more subtle things like landfills, industrial areas, and commercial zones (more so in Sim City 4, where traffic noise becomes a factor to how desirable a zone is). Naturally, anything that humans wouldn't want sitting in their backyard in RealLife, Sims wouldn't want either.
** The inverse of this is called YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard), which includes things like parks, schools, hospitals and police stations. A good strategy is to balance out the NIMBY with YIMBY. (Sure you're living next to a pollution factory, but look at the nice trees!)

* ''VideoGame/CitiesSkylines'' features a similar [=NIMBY=] system as the ''[=SimCity=]'' example above. However, you now have to factor what you should and should not build in your zones. For example, lumping in industrial zones right next to your residential areas will pollute the water system and makes your citizens sick and forces the medical service buildings (if you have any built in your city) to dispatch ambulances to pick up your ill citizens and send them to the nearest medical service building for treatment. This also applies if you connect any water pipe from a residential zone to an industrial zone regardless if your industrial areas are built away from your residential ones; no matter if you have water treatment facilities to deal with the wastewater buildup, the consequences will remain the same until you appropriately fix them. Also debuting in this game is the introduction of noise pollution. Even otherwise non-ground polluting buildings should be built away from residential zones as your citizens will complain about the noise and eventually will get sick due to vertigo or hearing damage caused by your noise-generating buildings. The construction of roads also influence the amount of noise pollution as well. Small, two-lane roads don't generate much noise and are ideal for low-density residential and commercial areas but high-density zones dislike them because they generate a lot of traffic due to so many vehicles using up a single lane at once and therefore contributes to noise buildup. Six-lane roads are generally suited to industrial and high-density commercial zones but not for residential ones as they generate a lot of ground-level noise thanks to major traffic buildup. Four-lane roads serve a comfortable middle ground between two-lane and six-lane roads and are suited to any buildable zone except low-density residential areas. On the other hand, office zones are the only buildable zones that do not particularly complain about what type of road is constructed in their areas so you can build them at your leisure. Ironically, the game does not feature air pollution generated from any of the buildings unlike ''[=SimCity=]''.
** You also have to take into account where you're going to dump your waste water. The game features realistic water flow -- [[ShownTheirWork yes, they had the staff learn partial differential vector calculus, computational fluid dynamics and Navier-Stokes equations]] -- which means you'd better make sure your poop water won't get sucked by a water pump downstream or get trapped in a stagnant pool.
* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} VI'' delves into this trope with the tile appeal system and cities having to build separate specialized districts. Most notably, tiles that have high appeal comfer bonuses to things like Neighborhoods or National Parks; placing things like Industrial districts, mines, and airports conversely decrease surrounding tiles' appeal.

* ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'': Any species with the Repugnant Trait causes reduced opinion in diplomacy. It doesn't matter if said Aliens are scientists and workers par excellence; others won't appreciate having them as neighbors. Changed in 2.2, where Repugnant species are just worse at producing Amenities than other species, making it harder to keep your people happy if the only entertainers you have are gross mushroom men.

Another aspect that's understated is that sometimes these projects can be twisted for far more insidious means, such as building a valuable bit of infrastructure that can improve public transportation (good)...by carving it straight through a neighborhood where mostly minorities and marginalized people live in, as a form of systemic erasure and good old fashioned bigotry and racism, without ''explicitly'' saying the bigoted aspects out loud (Which is incredibly bad). The end result can lead to people who would otherwise have accepted the genuinely good elements to refuse to allow the project to go through, since it's clear that it's being twisted and corrupted by power-hungry corporations or uncaring bigots and politicians to destroy what little the marginalized communities might still have.

Another aspect that's understated is that sometimes these projects can be twisted for far more insidious means, such as building a valuable bit of infrastructure that can improve public transportation (good)...by carving it straight through a neighborhood where mostly minorities and marginalized people live in, as a form of systemic erasure and good old fashioned bigotry and racism, without ''explicitly'' saying the bigoted aspects out loud. The end result can lead to people who would otherwise have accepted the genuinely good elements to refuse to allow the project to go through, since it's clear that it's being twisted and corrupted by power-hungry corporations or uncaring bigots and politicians to destroy what little the marginalized communities might still have.

Similarly, if a new housing facility or treatment center for homeless people recovering from addiction is proposed, neighborhood residents may oppose it, thinking that all the clients will be [[TheAlcoholic alcoholics]] and {{Addled Addict}}s, and fear that the facility will turn EverytownAmerica into a WretchedHive. The presence of a number of facilities for homeless people in a neighborhood may cause disturbances, but a single, well-managed facility might not cause these negative effects.[[note]]The negative perception of facilities serving homeless people is often due to the "concentration of poverty" in poor areas. If all of the homeless shelters, addiction centers, and soup kitchens are in one place, there will likely be encampments, public drinking, and other problems.[[/note]]

Similarly, if a new housing facility or treatment center for homeless people recovering from addiction is proposed, neighborhood residents may oppose it, thinking that all the clients will be [[TheAlcoholic alcoholics]] and [[{{Addled Addict}}]]s, and fear that the facility will turn EverytownAmerica into a WretchedHive. The presence of a number of facilities for homeless people in a neighborhood may cause disturbances, but a single, well-managed facility might not cause these negative effects.[[note]]The negative perception of facilities serving homeless people is often due to the "concentration of poverty" in poor areas. If all of the homeless shelters, addiction centers, and soup kitchens are in one place, there will likely be encampments, public drinking, and other problems.[[/note]]

Also known as [[FunWithAcronyms NIMBY]]. A key tool of NIMBY advocates is zoning regulations. As an example, an upper-class neighborhood might use its single family zoning to block construction of an apartment building for low-income people. A newer tactic is to use environmental regulations. For example, a posh oceanfront community that wants to prevent a homeless shelter from being built may develop a sudden deep and abiding love for protecting the habitat of a burrowing beetle (that just ''happens'' to live at the site of the proposed shelter). There is a more extreme version that believes that everything noisy, smelly, polluting, dangerous or ugly should be built in the middle of nowhere in an AbandonedArea and will oppose projects even if they're built nowhere near them, dubbed "[=BANANAs=]" - "Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone", which is a viable option... [[EasyLogistics in some video games]]. The opposite is Yes In My Backyard advocates ([=YIMBYs=]. They support building new social housing and community facilities.

Also known as [[FunWithAcronyms NIMBY]]. A key tool of NIMBY advocates is zoning regulations. As an example, an upper-class neighborhood might use its single family zoning to block construction of an apartment building for low-income people. A newer tactic is to use environmental regulations. For example, a posh oceanfront community that wants to prevent a homeless shelter from being built may develop a sudden deep and abiding love for protecting the habitat of a burrowing beetle (that just happens to live at the site of the proposed shelter. There is a more extreme version that does believe that everything noisy, smelly, polluting, dangerous or ugly should be built in the middle of nowhere and will oppose projects even if they're built nowhere near them, dubbed "[=BANANAs=]" - "Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone", which is a viable option... [[EasyLogistics in some video games]]. The opposite is Yes In My Backyard advocates ([=YIMBYs=]. They support new housing and community buildings.

An often overlooked aspect of [=NIMBYism=] is the fear of the unknown. Projects that are dissimilar to those already up and running in the same area have a harder time convincing people. Say for instance a new light rail line is planned. In Germany or France, most people are familiar with light rail lines and have either lived near one in the past or seen one on holidays. In the US, most people don't know the first thing about them and thus fears are naturally bigger and [[ScareCampaign easier to exploit through political ads]]. Often people cannot possibly comprehend their own or other people's erstwhile opposition once the project is completed, as the benefits become apparent and the downsides turn out to have been exaggerated.

Also known as [[FunWithAcronyms NIMBY]]. There is apparently a more extreme version that does believe that everything noisy, smelly, polluting, dangerous or ugly should be built in the middle of nowhere and will oppose projects even if they're built nowhere near them, dubbed "[=BANANAs=]" - "Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone", which is a viable option... [[EasyLogistics in some video games]].

There are many things in life whose existence is desirable, or even essential to the society we live in, but that people generally don't want to live ''too'' close to. They might be noisy, smelly, polluting, dangerous, or just ugly. However as any ''VideoGame/SimCity'' player will tell you, not everything can be in the middle of nowhere - for people to have cheap and convenient access to them, they have to be near to civilization.

Fair enough. Just... Not In My Backyard, OK?

While it might be rather selfish to want the benefits of such amenities while declaring the downsides to [[BystanderSyndrome not be their problem]], it can be justified - there is little to no reward for living nearby, and often the decrease in property values actually punishes the neighbours on top of the lowered quality of life. It's not necessarily hypocritical except in Zero-sum situations where they [[{{Jerkass}} want the good]] [[BystanderSyndrome without the bad]].

* The issue of whether to allow more higher density housing development in urban and suburban areas became a major political issue at the state and local level in California, throughout American cities, and other English-speaking nations in the 2010's. The crash of the construction industry in the 2008 recession followed by rapid job growth in urban areas and a "return to the city" movement led to skyrocketing rents in urban areas and calls for increased housing production. This pitted self-proclaimed [=YIMBYs=][[note]]Yes In My Backyard[[/note]], a younger pro-growth and development faction, against "[=NIMBY=]" groups consisting of older homeowners concerned about "neighborhood character" and home values and sometimes allied with lower-income organizations concerned that new housing construction would gentrify their neighborhoods. This led to the seemingly dry topic of zoning becoming a polarized political topic that cut across [[UsefulNotes/AmericanPoliticalSystem party lines]], with some Democrats allied with Republicans to eliminate single-family zoning [[note]]areas where only stand-alone houses with yards can legally be built[[/note]], while other Democrats working with other Republicans to defend it.

* The issue of whether to allow more higher density housing development in urban and suburban areas became a major political issue at the state and local level in California and throughout American cities in the 2010's. The crash of the construction industry in the 2008 recession followed by rapid job growth in urban areas and a "return to the city" movement led to skyrocketing rents in urban areas and calls for increased housing production. This pitted self-proclaimed [=YIMBYs=][[note]]Yes In My Backyard[[/note]], a younger pro-growth and development faction, against "[=NIMBY=]" groups consisting of older homeowners concerned about "neighborhood character" and home values and sometimes allied with lower-income organizations concerned that new housing construction would gentrify their neighborhoods. This led to the seemingly dry topic of zoning becoming a polarized political topic that cut across [[UsefulNotes/AmericanPoliticalSystem party lines]], with some Democrats allied with Republicans to eliminate single-family zoning [[note]]areas where only stand-alone houses with yards can legally be built[[/note]], while other Democrats working with other Republicans to defend it.

Compare to OriginalPositionFallacy, in which people demand something while assuming they will benefit from it or not be subject to the downsides.

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* Skyscrapers. The high cost of land makes high-rise buildings beneficial in downtown areas as then more housing and workplaces can be fit into the same plot of land. However, these same structures can be considered an eyesore by local residents who don't like getting their views obstructed. UsefulNotes/WashingtonDC is particularly notorious for this: the construction of the 12-floor, 165ft tall Cairo Hotel in 1894 caused such an uproar among locals that Congress passed laws in 1899 and 1910 placing severe restrictions on the maximum height of any new buildings (though existing buildings like the 555ft-tall Washington Monument were [[GrandfatherClause grandfathered in]] and remain to this day the tallest in the city). Today, Washington D.C. notably lacks any skyscrapers, but also suffers from a lack of affordable housing, suburban sprawl, and some of the worst traffic in the country.