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State's Interest Soars in Wind Power Potential

As the prices of fossil fuels reach unprecedented levels, a host of Michigan residents, legislators, and businesses have increased their interest in renewable energy, sources of power that will not dry up, run out, or increase the state's dependence on foreign resources. Wind turbines have taken the lead in this quest for independence and cheaper energy, represented locally by the success of Mackinaw City's wind farm, and a legislative push to build more wind generating facilities throughout Michigan.

The stock value of wind turbines is increasing, said Rich Vander Veen, president of Mackinaw Power, the company that built the towers on the wind-rich Straits of Mackinac. The company retains permits to build three more in Mackinaw City, and Mr. Vander Veen said that he is considering doing so. With state support, wind farms have the potential to create thousands of new jobs in an energy field that produces virtually no pollution, he said.

Village Manager Jeff Lawson said the local turbines generate approximately two million kilowatts of electricity each year, enough to power 600 households, and for several years Mackinaw City was the sole supplier of the Green Generation Pilot Program, hosted by Consumers Energy. The turbines allowed any Consumers customer to support alternative energy production in Michigan. All 11 million kilowatts produced in Mackinaw City were sold, said Steve Stubleski, project manager for the Green Generation program.

Wind power is more expensive than traditional power sources like coal or natural gas because most of the plants that produce traditional power have been operating for decades, and their facilities are largely paid off, Mr. Stubleski explained. In order to qualify for the Green Generation program, however, alternative energy plants must be new, and the companies that produce wind power are still paying off their facilitates. To do so, they must add surcharges

Green Generation customers pay 1.667 cents more per kilowatt hour for power, Mr. Stubleski said. Traditional power costs approximately nine cents per kilowatt hour. Supporters of wind power pay more than 10 cents per kilowatt hour. The costs for traditional and green power are kept separate, he added, so customers who do not choose to support the Green Generation program do not have to pay higher bills.

There are two ways residential customers can go about participating in the program. They can buy 100 percent of their power through the Green Generation program, raising their electric bill by an average of $12 per month, or they can opt to buy a portion of their power through the Green Generation program. If they buy a portion of their power this way, customers purchase what Consumers Energy calls "green blocks." Each "block" represents 150 kilowatts of power and costs $2.50 per month, a surcharge added to the regular rate. High-use residential customers and businesses get a better rate. They pay $2 per green block, as long as they buy at least 100 blocks per month.

Although supporters of alternative energy might wish otherwise, no one can buy wind power directly from the turbines that produce it. Energy produced by all manner of sources flows together into the electrical grid, whether it comes from wind turbines, coal plants, hydroelectric plants, or nuclear generators. However, more electricity flowing into the grid from Green Generation sources means companies like Consumers can back away from traditional power sources, allowing Michigan to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, Mr. Stubleski said.

The wind farm in Mackinaw City was not designed to serve the village alone, Mr. Lawson said. Its power can be purchased by any Consumers customer, but the turbines have been good for the local economy, he added. The village makes $1,800 each month by leasing land for the towers, and receives an additional $9,249.16 a year in taxes. Each year, this amounts to $30,449.16 in revenue for the village.

"This is not a small addition to our general fund budget," he added. "We wouldn't want to lose them."

Initially, Mackinaw Power owned the turbines in the village and had a three-year agreement with Consumers Power to buy the turbines' energy. Later, the wind farm was sold to Grand Rapids-based Crystal Flash Energy, and last year Crystal Flash renewed the powerpurchase agreement. Consumers will buy power from Mackinaw City's turbines for the next 25 years.

The public is likely to see a great deal more wind towers popping up across the state. In an effort to increase high-tech jobs in Michigan, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and provide cheap, non-polluting power to the state, Governor Jennifer Granholm recently directed Peter Lark, chairman of the Michigan Public Service Commission, to create a comprehensive energy plan for Michigan. The plan includes a push to increase alternative energy production, which would lead to more wind, solar, and geothermal power in the electrical grid, Mr. Vander Veen said.

In a press release dated Thursday, April 6, she said, "Michigan has the capability to become America's alternative energy development epicenter, and that offers a tremendous opportunity do diversify our economy."

Mr. Lark's report, due at the end of the year, will cover a wide variety of factors related to power production in Michigan. It will cover legislative changes needed to implement Governor Granholm's new power policies and include a "renewable energy portfolio," and include a plan detailing how the state will encourage the production and use of alternative energy sources in Michigan. This plan will require that a certain percentage of the state's power come from renewable energy sources, she said. The precise amount has not been released.

One large-scale project is already underway downstate. Noble Environmental Power, a Connecticut-based company, has begun a wind farm in Huron County. According to Julie HarkerLeigh, director of community outreach for Noble, the company plans to begin erecting its 32-turbine wind farm by June. It will generate enough electricity to power 16,000 homes. In the long run, Noble hopes to expand the 32 turbine wind farm to 250, she added. The project will use a ridge that runs across 35,000 acres of farmland.

Noble pays farmers for the necessary easements, she said, and they will receive a percentage of the profits from the wind farm when it is fully operational.

Wind power may not become dominant in Michigan, Ms. Harker-Leigh said, but, "Everything we do reduces emissions from traditional sources, which are linked to asthma and other health problems." Currently, she said, 57 percent of the state's power comes from imported coal.

The Green Generation program graduated from a pilot program to a full-fledged operation September 29, 2005. By March, 1,300 customers had signed up, but the company still needs more alternativeenergy customers. Not only have new wind power companies come online, Mr. Stubleski said, a number of facilities that burn methane gas from landfills are also producing power.

"We now have a surplus," he said, "but this is not bad news for the company. It just means that more people have the opportunity to take part in the program."

Mr. Vander Veen said the wind turbines in Mackinaw City were intended to represent a new beginning for power generation in Michigan.

"It was a pilot program," he said. "We wanted the eight million people who cross the Mackinac Bridge each year to see what power production will look like in the 21st century.

"We have one main purpose," he added: "to educate."

Wind turbines have taken the lead in the quest for independence and cheaper energy, represented locally by the success of Mackinaw City's wind farm. One of the three towers is pictured here at sunset.