Thank you for featuring James Dulley’s recent column about windmill power. His tempered advisements regarding this abundant and alternative energy source are a welcome change to the general media tone of naysayers who would keep us all in the throes of status-quo power generation.

In the future I also hope the Bangor Daily News will offer their readers an article or two that introduces small-scale hydroelectric equipment – which is essentially an automotive alternator attached to an extremely modest propeller, requiring only a brook of one-foot depth and two-foot width to function effectively, generating enough electricity to run all the light bulbs in an average home. Maine has enough water running freely – think about that word – all over the place, that collectively, little alternators here and there could accomplish big things economically. Moreover, companies such as Real Goods and others offer this equipment at affordable prices.

Currently, all puns intended, neither the mini-windmills nor the micro-hydroelectric plants are anywhere near sufficiently advanced to totally displace typical and time-worn technologies such as Bangor Hydro or Central Maine Power.

But retooling in any major industry has always been done from the ground up, since trickle-down evolution doesn’t often happen, for the simple reason that a monopoly wants its customers to continue their dependence – that’s how the company makes its money.

Therefore, Q&A pieces such as Dulley’s go a long way toward not only educating the public about its energy options, but also motivating folks to explore additional possibilities that will free them from the chains that traditional energy utility companies would like to see remain in place.

R.W. Estela

Orono