Projects

We Have Two Great Rivers Surrounding Us!

Why In Heavens Name are We Paying Anyone for Electric Power???

Not Only Could We Provide The City of Cairo with Electric Power... but We Could SELL OUR POWER to Other Towns and Residents for Miles Around.

And Considering The Power Potential of The Mississippi... We Wouldn't Even Have to Consider The Ohio... thus leaving that Side of Town Free for Other Developments.

What I Propose is Building a Form of Mini-Dams... where The Flow of The River and River Traffic is Not Obstructed. The Area "between" The Island West of Ft. Defiance State Park and The Illinois Bank is Ideal for That Purpose. By Applying a Series of Mini-Turbines (which could  be progressively added with expansion) The Plant would be Unobtrusive... and Would Not Be Environmentally Destructive.

Also... The Island (I forget The Name) could even be Developed into a Tourist Attraction... along with The Plant. A Road "to" The Island would Be Built "on top" of The Turbines.

And if The Project is Successful... We Could Help "Build" Similar Projects Around The Country... Creating Another Substantial Business Endeavor for The City of Cairo.

Obviously... This Project has a Lot of Work and Planning Yet to Be Done. At this time... I don't know if The Island Is (or Could Be) Owned and Developed by The City of Cairo. I am sure there would be Many Hurdles to Clear before even Seriously Considering This Project. But... The Plan is Still Worth Considering... even if We Have to Go "Up River" and find Another Location. It is Still "Doable"!

In Many Ways... We Really Don't Have a  Choice! We Have to Come Up with Some Form or Forms of Alternative Energy. The Cairo Public Utility Company would continue to Provide Natural Gas and Electricity for Years to Come... but would Eventually Provide Only Gas. Considering The Lucrative Potential for Developing a New Business such as This... They Might Actually Be a Primary Supporter of The Project. After All... The "Day of Petroleum Based Power" is Coming to an End. Natural Gas is Only Going to Become More Scarce and Expensive. Change is Inevitable... and The Sooner The City of Cairo Starts to Seriously Plan for Its Future Energy Needs... The Better!

While There are Many Forms of Alternative Energy... from Solar Cells to Wind Power... The One That We Have as a Ready Asset to Use is Hydro-Power. The Mighty Mississippi is Ready and Waiting. All We Have to Do is Harness Just a Fraction of That Great Power... and Make It Our Own.

The Cost of Construction of The Hydro-Electric Plant is Not Prohibitively Expensive. With Increased Revenue... The City Should Be Able to Fund The Project. Hopefully, We Can Get Some Help from The State and Other Sources.

Regardless... after it is Completed and Paid For and Up and Running... The Citizens of Cairo Can Expect Their Energy Bills to Decrease Dramatically... and Continue to Drop as Time Goes On.

Also... It Would Be Great if The City of Cairo would Seriously Start Looking Into Independent Residential Alternative Energy... meaning Energy Sources that are Totally Independent of Any Outside Source. Passive Solar Energy and Solar Cells are two of These Alternatives.

It's Hard to Imagine... but Someday There Won't Be "Any" Power Lines... or Gas Lines. The Fact of The Matter Is... That Day is Not that far Into The Future. Scientists already Know How To Transmit Energy through Space without Physical Means. Like Most New Technology though... it is Prohibitively Expensive for Practical Application.

Also... We Still Have Not Even Begun to Tap Into Nuclear Power. One Day Every Home will have Its Own Small Nuclear Reactor... Supplying The Entire House and Family with All The Power They Will Ever Need. And... there Won't Be Any "Nuclear Waste" to Worry About!

Why Don't We Start Thinking About... and Planning for Not Only Our Present Energy Needs... but Those of Our Children and Grandchildren?

At This Time... The Expense of Power and Property Taxes... Is Killing This Town. It Is Driving Citizens "Out of Town". We have to Stop The Exodus of People Leaving Cairo... by Not Only Giving Them a Reason "Not To Leave"... but also Giving Them a "Reason To Stay". And That Reason Will Be Why Others Choose Cairo as a Place to Come To and Settle Down... among Many Others!

Think About It...

Best of Life, Love and Friendship,

Lonnie J. Burris

Citizen of Cairo