Little guys could be green and clean, too

As I write this, I'm humming "I can get by with a little help from my friends" :-)

Y'all know that I've been hot and heavy into pushing clean and alternative energy source. My parter and I have been burning up the Tubes looking for individual/household-level grants and incentives for co-generation. From the appearance, unless you are a school, a non-profit entity, a local government or a small business, th'ain't any.

That's a shame and almost seems to me as if the individual consumer is destined to be beholden to commercial generation. We know that commercial generators in NC consistently defy EPA and state mandates for pollution control. We know they've played footsie with rates for years. There is simply no excuse for their behavior and I personally am seeking to be free of them.

You know what comes next. My state Representative is Bill Faison. He seems to be a straight-up guy and he actually answers emails. (Even better, you don't get back a Biddy Dole rubberstamp from RovePress, Inc that starts with those irritating words, "As you know, since 9/11" blahblahblah. The Honorable Mr Faison actually writes back. That's a real person.)

I'm posting this in hopes that maybe someone else will be moved to write their legislator to get them to shake a leg on individual incentives.

Dear Sir:

I appreciate your response to my email of last week. It means a lot to be acknowledged. Your time is appreciated.

I am writing you today about a concern I have, and I hope that you or your staff might be able to put a finger on exactly what I'm looking for. I have recently purchased a home in Caswell County, NC, that has approximately 8 and a half acres of land. It is my goal to make good use of the available wind, solar and (possibly) hydro resources in order to generate my own electricity. While the equipment and technology are nearly within reach and the standards seem to be fairly well laid out, I am having trouble finding any consumer-level loans or programs to assist in my endeavor. I see that the state of North Carolina has plenty of low-interest loans available for non-profits, schools, small businesses and local governments. What I can't seem to find are any lost-cost loan or outright grant programs for individual households.

I remember the clean, clear blue skies of my childhood outside Asheville, lo, those forty-mumble years ago. I remember the clarity of the stars at night. I also remember not having asthma from ozone and coal smoke. It occurred to me that maybe I can do something substantive myself to make our state a little cleaner, restore some of the verdant beauty we had. It might be only a small contribution, but I believe that every small contribution can add up to a large and visible difference.

It seems to me that it would be of as much benefit to the environment and the economy for individuals to shoulder the responsibility of contributing time, space and effort toward clean energy as it does for large commercial producers to do the same. To date, the large producers have been less than willing to improve their technologies and (judging by the reduced quality of our air) less than willing to move forward with truly clean production technologies. I lived out of state for about 25 years. When I returned home, the impact of years of industrial pollution was grossly visible and greatly disappointing to me. We're blessed with such a beautiful state. We really should have taken better care of her. I do believe we can bring her back if each person will pitch in, even just a little. I'm willing to do my part -- but I need some direction and a bit of assistance.

I believe that if more individuals or households were availed the same means as local governments, schools, non-profits, etc, that we could make clean power and clean air a reality in North Carolina. We've been a leader in independent thought and innovation since the Mecklenburg Resolve. To me, availing clean power generation at the household level could prove that our leadership is still strong.

Again, your time is greatly appreciated, as well as all that you do for North Carolina.

Sincerely,

(me)
Yanceyville, NC