Subject: Hydropower 1 of 3



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(1021)   Sat 20 Jul 91 21:59                             
By: Don Kulha
To: All

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Seeking Our Own Level by Paul Cunningham // This second issue of
Home Power Magazine gives me the opportunity as Hydro Power 
editor to wax philosophical. A chance to put aside thinking about 
the "hows" of generating electrical power from water and to 
reflect on the whys, by still waters, of course. Around a decade 
or more ago a certain realization was taking hold. Yes, we could 
escape the prescribed route of greater specialization, 
consumerism and urbanization that North American culture had 
mapped for us. The ultimate metaphor for carving out our new 
lifestyle from the social and spiritual wilderness was to 
generate our own electricity from wind, sun, and water. Home 
Power. We were and are literally putting the power back into our 
own hands. It was a matter of the amperage and the ecstasy. 
Becoming more conscious of our energy generation and consumption 
also brought the realization that we really needed very little 
electricity to be comfortable. So where are we now? This is 
difficult to assess since the people involved are by their 
situation a very decentralized group. Yet, I receive letters from 
all over the world from people who know something about head and 
flow, nuts and volts, and also from those who don't, but believe 
in the magic of turning water into electricity. The truth is, we 
are everywhere. We are part of an unnoticed, but vital and 
growing, network of people who are interested in generating their 
own power. And now this spectrum has broadened to a great degree.  
Reasons for small-scale power generation range from the practical 
(beyond the commercial power lines) to the environmental (small 
scale generation is less harmful than megaprojects or nukes). The 
original trickle of backwater hydro power enthusiasts has 
swelled. Water, of course, is not deterred by obstacles-- it 
flows over them, wears them down through time and seeks its own 
level. Something like this is happening with the alternative 
energy movement in general. The part that is successful has 
persevered and attracted a following on its own terms. A very 

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