The Paul Livingston piece (BDN, Dec. 4) provided excellent coverage of the three-hour presentation of the urban sprawl dilemma.

One very important aspect of urban sprawl was never mentioned: the energy required to support a society with low population density. Central heating systems and mass transit are out. The fuel requirements for our present housing matrix are open-ended: commuting to work, school bussing, fire and police service, mail delivery, snow plowing, UPS deliveries, 911 coverage, trash collection, powerline maintenance, electric meter reading, trips to the store, cleaners, doctor etc. (I almost forgot: the delivery cost of the BDN.)

Several decades ago the sprawl was dominated by low-income households living in mobile homes. Now I see four-car garages, in-ground swimming pools, etc. This housing pattern is locked in for 100 years. Yet the energy to sustain it is not. Exxon has oil drilling rigs tethered in water two miles deep. The mooring lines are several miles long and weigh more than 600,000 pounds each. This is where the next generation of gasoline is coming from. And it will not be cheap.

As pointed out in the hearing, the “service center community” is subsidizing the sprawl. At what point and in what form will someone holler “Uncle?” Richard C. Hill Old Town