Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Wind Farm

Right now there is a major debate in the state of Michigan about putting a wind farm off the coast of Lake Michigan. The company that wants to build it is in the process of holding public hearings about it and as expected people are opinion is divided about it. The facility would consist of a large number of wind turbines placed two to three miles off shore to generate electricity.

One group says it will make jobs and the other says they won’t be local. They fell that the construction will be done by specialized companies and the plant will be run by outsiders. While there is something to said for that theory, even if outside crews do the work they still need to eat and sleep somewhere and that means local jobs. The people who would run the facility are not going to commute to work, they will most likely buy or build homes in the area and that also means jobs.

Then there is the issue of esthetics. The not in my back yarders say it will be ugly and hurt the local tourist business. They think it’s probably a good idea but it would work better further up or down the coast. They need to realize that while the locals might see this as ugly there are others who would go out of their way to see it. Those people mean money spent in the area and that local jobs.

All and all it has the potential to be both a good or bad thing for the area and the State, but like so many things when and if it is built we will find a way to live with it. Who knows people might even find it something to brag about and remember they come to see the Hover Damn don’t they?