Letter to the editor

Opportunities for Customers of Black Earth Electric I consider myself fortunate to be a customer of Black Earth Electric. It is one of 80 municipal utilities still left in Wisconsin which provide electricity as a public service, and not for profit of distant private owners. The Village of Black Earth owns Black Earth Electric Utility , whose assets include a substation in Black Earth, distribution lines to serve its customers in the Village of Black Earth as well as in the Towns of Vermont, Berry, Black Earth and Mazomanie, and office and equipment space and equipment located in Black Earth. We are very fortunate to have a community owned electric grid and equipment. The Village of Black Earth has a history of trying to improve the efficiency of its provision of electric power. For example, to provide electrical service to its customers at low cost, in 2001 the Black Earth Electric Utility agreed with the Mazomanie Electric Utility to form Vanguard Electric Commission (Vanguard) to provide maintenance services necessary for the operation of the two individual municipal utilities working together. Our community utility is emerging from an unfortunate period when rates were not adjusted for increasing costs of doing business, but we are on an upward financial management path. The third positive aspect of Black Earth Electric is its ability to join the technological revolution. Solar generated power is becoming more economical at smaller scales. It is renewable. It does not need huge new investments in transmission lines, since customers can be in a local grid directly connected to the panels. Black Earth Electric is in a great position to take advantage of its locally owned grid, maintained in collaboration with Mazomanie, and join the renewable energy revolution to provide renewably generated electricity to its customers at a lower cost than is presently the case. David Stanfield, a Black Earth Electric Customer Blue Mounds