DANBURY, CONN. — Chemical engineer and solar power specialist Dru Bacon will discuss the “Viability of Alternative Energy” in a lecture on Thursday, Nov. 18, at Western Connecticut State University.

Bacon’s talk, presented as part of the WCSU “Science at Night” lecture series, will be at 7 p.m. in Room 125 of the Science Building on the university’s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. A reception with light refreshments will follow in the Science Building Atrium. Admission will be free and the public is invited to attend.

His lecture will focus on the costs and environmental impact of solar and wind energy development, and compare these with the cost and environmental consequences of coal, oil and natural gas usage in power generation. A fundamental point of his presentation is that “renewable energy sources are not only more environmentally friendly, but economically viable as well.”

Bacon currently serves as an alternative energy consultant for Allwest Energy, an Arizona-based company founded in the 1990s to design and install solar and wind electric systems for a diverse range of commercial and residential applications. Allwest has designed more than 1,300 solar systems for clients in the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas as well as other locations across Arizona.

A chemical engineer by profession, Bacon previously worked for 30 years at Eastman Kodak, serving as superintendent of the company’s research and development division. He has written numerous published articles and lectured widely at universities, energy conferences and other public forums about the potential for development of alternative energy resources. Bacon received recognition in the Arizona Republic 2008 Green Hero Award contest for his work as founder of an environmental group in the Pebble Creek community of Goodyear, Ariz., to promote solar panel installations by local homeowners.

For more information, contact WCSU Professor of Biological and Environmental Sciences Dr. Thomas Philbrick at philbrickt@wcsu.edu or (203) 837-8773.

 

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