Proponents of wind turbine projects call it green power. Opponents wonder if the big, white windmills are more like natural-habitat killing machines.

Prince Edward County Mayor Leo Finnegan is caught in the middle of a debate on whether a score of wind energy projects proposed for his municipality would benefit the area.

Given the variety of opinions being expressed on the projects, Finnegan is wisely not jumping to endorse each one. But he and his council would also be wise to approach the concept of wind energy with an open mind and keep criticism of the plans in proper context.

His county has the potential to gain jobs, revenue and the privilege of being a renewable energy hub in Ontario if plans for seven different proposed wind power projects prove to be environmentally sound.

Canadian Hydro, Gaia Power, Gilead Power Corp., IPC Energy and Skypower Corp. have all announced plans to build wind turbine projects in Prince Edward County in recent years.

Gilead Power Corp. and Trillium Power Wind Corporation are also planning projects off shore of the county in Lake Ontario.

The Canadian Hydro project is the only one council has had to make a decision on at this point. The council voted to alter some zoning bylaws to allow the project to move ahead and the project is now being reviewed by the Ontario Municipal Board.

The other projects are in the early stages and councillors are waiting for more details so they can make an informed decision on a topic that has divided environmentalists.

In a recent interview with The Intelligencer, Finnegan said he has not taken a stance on the projects yet.

"I'm not against wind energy," he said. "But I think it would need to be properly situated. I wouldn't want to see the countryside all covered in turbines. It's something that has to be thought out and regulated carefully."

Others in the county have already made up their minds. A new group called the Alliance to Protect Prince Edward County (APPEC) has formed to oppose the proposed projects, saying construction of wind turbines on the south end of the county would violate legislation to protect migrating birds and species at risk.

Janice Gibbins, one of the group's founders, also believes the manufacturing and installation of several hundred large wind turbines would be so laborious, it would offset any benefits to the environment the turbines could bring.

"Each turbine has massively-sized equipment and each turbine needs its own road and construction site," she said. "At construction time you have a two-lane road going in and three acres of construction around each turbine. Unless, they're sited carefully away from wetlands and habitat they do a tremendous amount of damage."

That is exactly why no one should be rushing into this proposal, nor should anything be carried out without extreme diligence. But sometimes long-term gain requires short term pain; as long as that gain is worth the effort and the pain is only short term, the risk should not be a deterrent.

The reason wind energy companies are popping up like never before is because the Ontario government has a mandate to reduce the use of traditional coal power plants in favour of more environmentally friendly forms of generating power.

Yes, wind turbines are big expensive objects that will require a lot of effort to build and maintain. But they are still better than a smokestack that would continuously produce smog, or a nuclear facility that produces waste we still haven't figured out a way to deal with safely.

APPEC's concern that the wind turbines could have a detrimental effect on bird populations and other species is legitimate -- and for this reason, all proposed projects should be subject to lengthy environmental screenings.

But the projects have enough potential upsides to command serious attention from the county. It is not yet clear how much revenue the municipality or private citizens would generate from lease agreements on land needed for turbines. It is also not yet clear how many jobs the projects could create.

However, politicians should keep pressing for the facts. The projects could end up being a terrific boon for the economy, not to mention the environment.