Tilting at Utilities

Trying to sell electricity to a power company may seem like a quixotic gesture, but for 18 months a modern-day Man of La Mancha, Martin Greenwald of Thompson Ridge, N.Y., has been doing his best. His $4,000 windmill stands on a 44-ft. tower behind the barn on his small farm and generates only 2 kw of power. But when the wind is right (about 15 m.p.h.), he has electricity to spare. So in 1977, Greenwald, 36, an assistant professor of industrial technology at Montclair State College, offered to sell his excess power to Orange and Rockland Utilities, which generates 695,000 kw of power.

The company agreed, but only if Greenwald would assume full responsibility for any damages. After all, a spokesman argued, a repairman might be injured during a blackout if he worked on lines that were kept "live" by Greenwald's windmill. Intent on striking a blow against monopolies, Greenwald appealed to the state Public Service Commission. Said he: "People are trying to become more self-sufficient. The windmill is a step in that direction." The commission ruled last week that the utility was being unreasonable in asking Greenwald "to indemnify the company against its own negligence." The commission ordered the utility to plug into the windmill without any strings. As Cervantes put it: "Those who'll play with cats must expect to be scratched."

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