potential energy is not only used for long distance slow fluid transfer, what in the case of a dam.. there the fluid at rest have a potential energy and that one is routed to harnish electricity... but there we get a continuous high velocity jet of stream due to the high water head, but in case...
why can't we go for harvesting hydropower from the pipelines, eventhough the flow is not continuous we can generate and store it,,, and can use it for small devices..