Ho-ly mo-ly. Manfred Mornhinweg, de la República de Chile, is now an official eco-hero, joining the proud ranks of such luminaries as Amory Lovins (and almost Michael Jackson).

Not only did Manfred freaking build his own homemade mini-hydroeletric power plant, but he documented the entire process with pictures and step-by-step instructions!

With the help of some of his friends and neighbors, and a whole lot of gumption, he dug a side-channel off a creek to divert some water for his lil’ hydroelectric plant.

He ordered the hydroelectric turbine from the glorious People’s Republic o’ China:

And eventually was able to power his house off hydroelectric electricity, after many months of hard work!

If you’re interested in how to make a homemade mini-hydroelectric power plant, or want to get electricity from a creek or stream, you’ll definitely want to check out his full account here. It took me a few days to read (slowly sounding out the big words, finger scrolling across the sentences), but it’s very interesting, quite so.