Plug in. Point up. Power on.

Manitoba makes so much clean hydro power that we sell what's left over to the neighbours, and lately the province has been moving to keep more of it home. So here's a fair question. Why is it easier to ship our power across the border than for a Manitoban to make a little of their own on a balcony?

It's pretty much what it sounds like. Small solar panels you plug into a regular wall outlet, like an appliance. You hang them on a balcony, a wall, or a railing, plug them in, and that's about it. Usually no electrician, no roof work, no permits. They quietly make power and send it straight into your home. Germany has more than a million of them. It's safe, it's proven, and it works everywhere it's allowed.

This one isn't really about the planet, since our grid is already almost all hydro. It's about who gets to join in. Right now a single plug-in panel faces the same approvals as a full rooftop system. And even in the province with the cheapest power in the country, plenty of households still find the bill a stretch. Manitoba's own utilities board has said it's time to do something about that.

So we're asking Manitoba Hydro and the province to make plug-in solar a simple, legal option, so making a little of your own power is something anyone can do, not just homeowners with a roof and a contractor.