Apr. 5--Green power is not just another environmentally lofty goal for the Rev. Charles Morris. It's a religious imperative. The pastor of St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church in Wyandotte has been using a wind turbine to provide electricity to his parish since 1997. As chairman of nonprofit Michigan Interfaith Power and Light, Morris views the promotion of renewable energy as a mission from a higher power. "I saw this as a spiritual issue because I believe renewable power is a visible sign of God's grace in the form of sacrament," he said. "If we wanted to make a statement, then we had to walk the talk." Wind power in Michigan is gaining popularity among residents and businesses as the price of natural gas -- often used to generate electricity -- has more than doubled in the last three years.

Advocates for increased use of zero-emission energy sources are building a major commercial wind turbine farm in Huron and Sanilac counties in the next five years. The multiphase project calls for 250 turbines to be spread over 40,000 acres at a cost of $600 million. The first 32 are expected to be running by the end of this year, according to Noble Environmental Power LLC, an Essex, Conn.-based wind-generation developer, which is majority- owned by J.P. Morgan Partners. "Wind is an indigenous state resource, and we're not taking advantage of it," said Peter Mastic, managing director of Noble Environmental and president of the Michigan Sustainable Energy Coalition.

"It is less expensive than new natural gas or new coal and every gigawatt we produce from wind is renewable." Michigan has three commercial wind turbines, one in Traverse City and two in Mackinaw City. The global wind market, about $11.8 billion in 2005, is expected to increase to an estimated $48.5 billion by 2015, a study by Clean Edge Inc. shows. Last year, private-sector investment in the energy technology industry was 4.2% of overall U.S. venture capital expenditures. The U.S. Department of Energy is shooting for a goal of 5% of the nation's electricity produced by wind turbines by 2010.

Erecting modern commercial windmills is expected to generate 1,200 gigawatts of power, or enough electricity to power 128,000 homes a year. There is also the potential to add 8,500 to 10,000 jobs related to the manufacturing of the turbines, a study by the Renewable Energy Policy Project in Washington, D.C., found. Several Michigan cities are embarking on a variety of wind power projects that would boost municipal goals for using renewable fuels like wind to as much as 30% of a city's total energy use by the year 2010. * Ann Arbor leaders are in discussions with Noble Environmental to purchase wind power as part of a 20-year, fixed-price contract.

* Wyandotte is considering building two or three commercial turbines on the Detroit River. Wind power is "absolutely more competitive in terms of price than it was a few years ago," said David Konkle, energy coordinator for the City of Ann Arbor. "The demand for wind power is huge, and we think we can invest in renewable energy and it will be cheaper for us" in the long run. Turbine tension Not everyone is in favor of building hundreds of metallic turbines on Michigan farmland. Like the literary character "Don Quixote de La Mancha" created by Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes in the 17th Century, some opponents view wind turbines as "oppressive giants" that would disturb the aesthetic quality of communities and lower property values around the state.

Critics claim the electricity wind turbines create is less reliable, because output is "intermittent and highly volatile." There are also concerns about the safety of birds that could fly in the paths of the turbines. Most wind turbines are 200 to 300 feet high with 100-foot blades rotating at more than 100 miles per hour. Opponents call the construction of wind farms nothing more than a tax scheme for large corporations. National Wind Watch, a new nonprofit in Rowe, Mass., critical of the commercial wind industry, recently said that a lot of the information about wind power is "one-sided, and frequently misleading." Other observers closer to home express caution about the role wind technology should have in Michigan's energy portfolio.

"Historically, the problem with renewable energy has been that they were not economically viable without substantial subsidies," said Roderick Coy, an energy attorney with Clark Hill in Lansing. "Another troubling thing is government mandates. Mandatory standards irrespective of cost are not a good idea. Prices are almost certain to rise." Nevertheless, wind energy is getting more popular in Michigan. Pastor Morris has seen even more dramatic savings after switching his parish to green power in 1997. "We wanted a snapshot for our strategic plan, which is what began us on our journey," he said.

"Over that time, we made some investments with our Southwest Airfoil 3 turbine and solar panels, and we found that our peak energy demand was reduced by 60% in five years. That translated to a $300-a-month reduction in the church's utility bill." Proponents of wind energy say the most likely way for that to happen is if Michigan does what 22 other states have done and adopts a renewable energy portfolio standard. Renewable portfolio standards require states to generate a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable sources every year. "States that don't have a renewable energy portfolio standard tend not to get many projects," said Mastic.

"For Michigan to get more than the project in the Thumb area, it is going to need a clear-path approach to compete with existing resources." Michigan companies in the mix Some of the Michigan-based companies doing work in the wind technology field include Mackinaw Wind Power in Mackinaw City, Alternative Power Supply in Detroit and McKenzie Bay International in Birmingham. Michigan's current electricity portfolio breaks down as follows: 56.7% coal, 26.4% nuclear, 13.4% natural gas, 2% from renewable sources and the rest from other energy sources. Of the 2% of renewable sources, wind power makes up 0.01% of Michigan's power.

While other states, such as Minnesota and Iowa, have achieved success in increasing the use of renewable fuels through mandates, not everyone thinks laws are the best way to incorporate green energy into Michigan's power portfolio. "Our view is that voluntary private programs should be given an opportunity to grow, mature and develop," said Daniel Bishop, a spokesman for Jackson- based CMS Energy Corp. CMS's Consumers Energy electrical utility is one of Michigan's leaders in the use of renewable fuels to generate power. Consumers Energy recently entered into electricity supply contracts with seven independent renewable energy projects, including the Noble Environmental wind farm project.

The company's Green Generation Program gets 6% to 7% of its energy from renewable energy sources. "We think there is virtue in letting customers act on a voluntary nature in terms of renewable energy," Bishop said. "We think it makes more economic sense than a state- mandated Renewable Portfolio Standard, which could end up being more expensive for the consumer." But even Consumers Energy has seen more than 1,700 of its electricity customers sign up for the Green Power program since September. Julie Ann Paige, a self- proclaimed environmental activist in Jenison, signed up as soon as she heard about the program.

"We wanted to put our money where our mouths were," the 25 year-old mother of two said. "The more we can do with renewable energy, the better."