Current cost to produce existing coal/nuclear $.03 kWh current cost to produce wind $.08 kWh Cost to produce new coal/nuclear $.08 kWh
More expensive than current production, but in line with future new plants. Issue is that coal/nuclear can run 24/7. Wind in Michigan is only at 20%-25% capacity. In addition wind blows most at midnight in spring and fall. Least energy needs are midnight in spring and fall.
Biggest energy need in Summer for air conditioning. Wind blows least in summer.
I have been to several wind farms and had a wind developer give me a guided tour inside a wind mill. (Rich Vanderveen- Macinaw City wind Farm) At the Harvest Wind Farm in Pigeon of 32 wind turbines, I had to turn my car off to hear them from 50 feet away. They were less noisty than the car engine. I also have had private tours of the biomass cow digester plant in Elsie Mi, Fermi 2 nuclear plant, Monroe Coal plant (one of the biggest int he world) and riverside landfill biomass plant. All of these have a place in our fuel mix.
Flicker- I don't see this as a serious problem. Birds- cats kill more birds in 1 week than windmills kill in 2 years. If you want to save the birds, than get rid of the cats. I proposed sending all the cats to Ohio. I called it my "cat and trade proposal" For more info look up the white paper by Mick Segrillo in Wisconsin.
Wind has good points and bad points. Make up your own mind. I think they have a place in the generation mix of electricity.