Test tidal turbine takes a beating

Having the highest tides in the world also means having the strongest tides ~ and that's what captivates those dreaming of harnassing tidal energy from the Bay of Fundy.

Tidal turbine testing started last November with the installation of the first of three different in-stream technologies. The test site is just a few kilometres from my daily dog walking route on the shores so I've been keeping a close eye on the project. Ultimately, as part of this testing phase there will be three turbines installed.

The Bay is quite intense in that location: the narrowest passage of a bay where 100 billion tonnes of seawater is passing with each 2x daily tide cycle and the news came this week that the 1st turbine lost a couple blades and will need to be removed from the Bay for further testing.

"The Tides" - A poem

With plans heating up for tidal power here in the Bay of Fundy, I thought you might find this poem amusing. This was written back in the 1920s, when the only technology considered for harnessing tidal power was a barrage (full causeway - hugely damaging to the environment - across the bay!). Luckily, we've given up on that idea, but, recently, equipment used to assess tidal power potential here was destroyed in the Bay during testing!

From Grace Helen Mowat's 1928 book Funny Fables of Fundy....

A stranger once said to the tides in the Bay:
"How strange you should live in this indolent way;
You crawl up the strand then crawl down again
Why can't you be useful and helpful to men?
For the past thousand years you have been just the same,
Such an idle existence! It's really a shame!"

The tides, rather ruffled, cried "What do you wish?
We fill up the fish weirs and bring in the fish
And drift-wood and rock-weed and much else besides.
Why, everyone waits for the turn of the tides!
We've washed the shores clean and never once shirked
If you did half as much you would feel overworked!'

"I propose," said the stranger (ignoring their theme),
"To use all your strength in a practical scheme.
I studied at college before I came here,
And everyone thinks me a great engineer!
I can hardly expect you to know who I am,
But I'm seriously thinking of building a dam
To keep you in bounds, till I need you, of course,
And then I expect to control you by force.
You can turn wheels and cranks by this simple device
And greatly aid commerce. Now won't that be nice?"

The waves made no answer to what the man said;
But talking it over that evening in bed
They grumbled and murmured: "We need not fear him;
Beside our great strength his adventure looks slim.
If he built up this, it is perfectly plain,
We must all push together and break it again.
And, if this arrangement should fail to survive,
We can wash in a shark that will eat him alive!"

The engineer tactfully waited awhile
Then, appearing next morning, he said with a smile:
"Dear tides, I am taking a trip up to town,
I hope you need something that I can bring down?"

They haughtily said: "You may bring, if you wish,
Some good gelatine for the young jelly-fish."

The item he added at once to his list,
And spoke of returning before he was missed;
And just as he promised, came home the next night,
His pockets all bulging with plans, blue and white,
The gelatine too he remembered to bring
(For jelly-fish need it so much in the spring!)
"These plans," he explained, "will be gold to your shore
By giving employment to men by the score."

But the tides in a voice that was hollow and cold,
Said: "Our fishes are silver; we don't care for gold."

"How hopelessly dull," cried the great engineer.
"My college diploma is little use here!
"I cannot express how this talk makes me feel!",
And appearing quite angry, he turned on his heel.

The sea-gulls brought word that a numerous band
Of workmen were filling the channel with sand,
And talked or erecting a barrier so high,
That no tides could cross over unless they could fly.

"Very well," said the tides, "let him do as he will,
And we for a time will keep perfectly still
And wait for the Equinox gales in the Fall -
And they you will see what becomes of this wall!"

The sea-gulls that Autumn all gathered in flocks,
To await the return of the fall Equinox.
They were fighting for seats with the plovers and crows,
When all of a sudden the Equinox rose!

With rushing and roaring the tides came apace -
And dealt the great structure a slap in the face!

The engineer, viewing the frantic attack,
Admonished hte tides that they better keep back!
But they cried, "We are holding our annual ball,
When the Equinox comes for a dance in the fall."

Then the tides with fantastic grimaces upreared,
And the engineer groaned, "It is just as I feared!"
Down, down, went the dam and the sea-wall besides,
And the engineer fell with the wreck of the tides.
And the waves washed his pockets as clean as could be
And carried his plan and his gold out to sea.

He may have survived, for i know he could swim,
But the tides never more have been bothered with him.

MORAL:
These facts tell us plainly to look on all sides
Before we are tempted to tamper with tides;
And when we are strangers, wherever we go,
There's always a side that we still do not know;
And if we too suddenly start to reform
Our plans and our gold may be lost in the storm!

NIfty tidal power video

It's probably no surprise that our massive tides are not only of interest to tourists but also to alternative energy folks. After an international tidal power study identified Bay of Fundy as the top worldwide site for tidal power, there's been a flurry of interest in such development here in my 'backyard'. I just came across a nifty 8 minute video from one of the companies (SeaGen) who has already installed tidal turbines in the U.K. It's a short documentary with some animations showing how generators (like the one in this photo) work.

In the Bay of Fundy, early assessments of our tidal power potential include proposals to develop an interpretation centre to better share the project with the public. Now that 'green is keen', I think folks would be really interested in learning more about tidal power while on vacation, don't you?

Fundy tidal power SEA complete

My blog readers from the Bay of Fundy region, and other readers from across the country, may be interested to know that the long-awaited Strategic Environmental Assessment of in-stream tidal power for our bay is now available.

Apparently there's enough potential in the tides to power 120,000 homes but this 'green energy' opportunity needs to weighed mindfully against potential changes and threats to the bay's sensitive ecology, traditional rural fishery, migratory bird feeding grounds, etc. The fact is: a tidal power project of the magnitude proposed for Fundy has never been tried anywhere else .... it would be a delicate experiment with the eyes of the region and the world upon it.

The Fundy SEA Report is a broad-ranging as it can be but there are still many unknowns. To download the report & other related documents, visit: www.offshoreenergyresearch.ca

Photo: Cape d'Or tidal rips (at the mouth of the Minas Channel)

Fundy tidal power workshops

In January, I blogged about potential tidal power demonstration sites on the Nova Scotia side of the Bay of Fundy. Now the New Brunswick Department of Energy is partnering with the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP) to conduct a series of public open houses about tidal energy in Fundy coastal communities. These sessions are part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of possible tidal power development in the Bay of Fundy.

Within the next week or so, these public forums are taking place in Alma, Moncton, Saint John, Grand Manan Island, Campobello Island, St George & Deer Island.

Background materials about tidal power will be available at these sessions and will be placed in local libraries and municipal offices. There's also lots of info & a session schedule on the BoFEP website.

With 100 billion tonnes of water moving through the Bay of Fundy with each tide, tidal power (assuming that its impacts on Fundy's ecosystem are few - which is, as yet, unknown) has the potential to be a big source of sustainable energy production in the future.

Tide out: ice-glazed mud

I'm still adjusting to my new camera but there's one feature I liked immediately - the high res optical zoom. Previously, great little coves like this were tricky to capture; this is Diligent River harbour at half tide. That's ice-glazed mud in the foreground, a flat band of receding tide across the middle and, of course, Cape Split in the background...about 10 km across the mighty Minas Channel (proposed tidal energy zone in the upper Bay of Fundy).

Bay of Fundy Tidal Energy News

Looks like the Bay of Fundy, already a magnet for fossil hunters, will soon be more involved in the global quest for fossil-fuel alternatives. The Premier of Nova Scotia just announced that a tidal power demonstration project will proceed (pending a full environmental assessment). To say this will make waves on the international scene is no exaggeration. That’s because the Bay of Fundy is blessed with some of the most robust tides in the world. Hopefully, the good news will be that we are no longer dealing with dams that damage ecosystems but with the equivalent of wind turbines that churn underwater. Photo shows demo CleanTech in-stream turbine, one of the candidate companies for the project.

Twelve million dollars will now be dedicated to building a testing and research facility that will serve two purposes: the beachhead where the energy gathered by the underwater turbines is converted to electricity and a research lab where scientists will gauge the environmental, technical and commercial feasibility of harnessing the Bay of Fundy tides. It's my understanding that there is also supposed to be some kind of interpretive centre for visitors.

If it all works out, the Bay of Fundy could be transformed into an internationally significant centre of excellent for tidal power.

Fundy Tidal Power Annoucement Today!

The Premier of Nova Scotia and the Provincial Energy Minister are coming to Parrsboro today for a press conference about tidal energy. I'm kinda thinking that they are going announce which companies have been chosen to build a tidal power demonstration devices in Minas Channel area of the Bay of Fundy.

I just happen to have this handy-dandy photo of the entrance to the channel as the diplay pic on my desktop. I took this last summer at half-tide. That's Cape Blomidon in the background and the edge of Partridge Island there in the middle with the tree topping. The Channel runs between them

The Minas Basin and Minas Channel have been regarded as prime North American sites for tidal power production. Click here for an aerial view of the Minas Channel or for more info take a look at my other posts in the tidal energy section of my blog (see menu in the margin).

Bay of Fundy tidal power developments

Longtime readers of my blog will know that I've been following possible development of Bay of Fundy tidal power for awhile now. Since I was a kid here on the Bay there has been a drastic move away from attempting to barricade tides and instead, as technology has advanced, much less invasive wave and in-stream tidal power concepts have now been developed and tested elsewhere in the world.

I was pleased to see that Maritime Tidal Energy, one of the companies investigating in-stream tidal power for the Bay of Fundy, just announced a partnership with the U.K.'s leader in tidal power development, Marine Current Turbines.

Marine Current Turbines have been great innovators in environmentally friendly in-stream tidal power projects such as for the Bristol Channel and, recently, for Northern Ireland. Tidal power is still a long way off for the Bay of Fundy (proposals are now requested for the first test turbines) but it appears that a such alliance could help move the concept in the right direction a bit sooner. I'm expecting to go over to the U.K. for a tourism exchange in '08, I wonder how easy it would be to take a peek at tidal power too!

Hike to Cape Sharp

Took advantage of the great weather this weekend to hike out to Cape Sharp lighthouse. Cape Sharp is located near the village of Black Rock, overlooking the Minas Channel (near where the proposed tidal energy project may be) near Parrsboro, Nova Scotia. The hike to the lighthouse is about 20 minutes via the old access road. The lighthouse was automated in 1989 so that road is only traversable by foot now. Doesn't bother me - it's well worth it for both the view and the solitude. The lighthouse itself is a salt shaker style, dating from 1886. It stands about 35 feet in height and its light reaches out 11 miles in the upper Bay of Fundy. That's just about perfect because that's pretty much the distance over to Cape Blomidon on the opposite side of the Bay! Luckily the tide was out today enabling me to take this photo looking up to the lighthouse from the beach - at high tide here I'd be way under water. All safe up on the lighthouse though where I stopped to explore the panoramic view.

More funds for Bay of Fundy tidal energy

Just heard today that a Bay of Fundy tidal power pilot project proposed by Nova Scotia Power and its Irish partner Open Hydro has received a $4-million shot in the arm from Sustainable Development Technology Canada.

The project cost to install an in-stream turbine on the bottom of the Bay of Fundy is expected to be $12-million.

This project will involve comprehensive environmental and oceanographic monitoring of a turbine placed in some of the strongest-known tidal currents in the world. (see map for places in the world that Open Hydro has identified as having the best tidal power potential - I marked in the Bay of Fundy).

The first Fundy turbine would produce one megawatt of electricity, enough to power 300 households. The project must still receive provincial environmental approval. The partners hope to have it operating by 2009 and test its operation in the following two years.

I'm continuing to follow this quite closely from my front row seat here on the Bay of Fundy, near the proposed tidal energy staging area - see sidebar for previous posts about tidal energy.

Two provinces fund tidal power study

It's been a few months since I've had anything to report on the potential of tidal power development in the Bay of Fundy. Interesting news this week, though: New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have just announced that they are jointly funding a study that will bring marine renewable power generation one step closer to reality.

The two provincial governments will each invest $75,000 in a strategic environmental assessment of tidal power in the Bay of Fundy. The assessment will include a comprehensive consultation process with organizations and groups with an interest in the future of tidal power in the region as well as a socio-economic impact assessment report.

The Offshore Energy and Environmental Research Association, a group of Nova Scotia universities established and funded by the provincial government to study the sector, will be responsible for carrying out the request for proposal process.

When the final report is back in the governments' hands next year, the energy ministers will have a better idea of the background of the competing tidal technologies on the market and the potential impact on the environment. And that information will serve as a starting point for the public engagement process to solicit concerns from groups such as fishermen, the shipping industry and the tourism sector.

That's a great step forward for what could possibly be the greenest form of energy on the planet.
(photo: NASA image from space of Minas Basin, Bay of Fundy, high-low tide - one of the possible tidal energy sites),

More tidal power for Bay of Fundy

More news on the tidal power front this week: A U.S. company plans to generate electricity with new technology by tapping the tides of Passamaquoddy Bay, an inlet of the Bay of Fundy surrounded by New Brunswick and Maine.

Ocean Renewable Power is zeroing in on the waters off Deer Island and are suggesting that the company's first tidal power generators could be operating in the bay as early as 2009. They are creating a floating structure that contains four turbine generators.

Ocean Renewable Power's initiative is just one of the recent projects aimed at harnessing the tidal powers in the Bay of Fundy, considered one of the best sites in the world for such attempts.

In mid-February, Nova Scotia Power announced that it was teaming up with an Irish company to try to build one of the world's largest single underwater turbines in the six-kilometre-wide Minas Passage by late 2009.

See my previous posts about in-stream tidal power.

Tidal power enviro research

Good news this week on the tidal energy front:

The Nova Scotia government is investing $250,000 to research tidal power. The funds will be given to the Offshore Energy and Environmental Research Association to do a Bay of Fundy tidal power environmental impact assessment.

Am I crazy or has anyone else noticed that 'green is keen' all of a sudden?

See previous Bay of Fundy tidal energy posts: in-stream turbine photo #1, photo #2, map of Minas Channel.

Enviro impacts of in-stream tidal energy

I've been searching everywhere for comprehensive environmental impact assessments of in-stream tidal energy. I guess because there haven't been any major in-stream tidal energy projects, there also isn't much available in the way of research results.

The environmental and societal impacts of the old style tidal barrage (think: dam) have been well documented: significant damage to estuarine ecosystems including destruction of habitat for fish, bird and other organisms, disruptions to commerical & recreational navigation, as well as significant alterations to river currents & sediments.

It appears that these factors would not come into play where in-stream tidal energy is concerned. Why?
1. in-stream turbines are located individually underwater, therefore no dam blocking the flow of water,
2. small marine life can pass through the slow turning blades (larger creatures are diverted by screens on some turbines),
3. early simulation appears to indicate that in-stream turbines (because they are capturing only a portion of the energy of the current) will not cause silt build up or significant alterations to marine currents.
If this is the case then in-stream tidal energy would be the greenest of the alternate energy technologies!

OpenHydro's in-stream turbine pics

Sourced these photos of OpenHydro's style of turbine. The above-surface platform shown on the one photo is primarily for demonstration purposes (to raise & lower the turbine) and would not be in the final 'field' of turbines. They would be fully submerged (like the other photo).

OpenHydro's turbines resemble giant fans with the blades connected to a rotor which spins slowly inside the structure as water flows through. Electricity is generated as the rotor turns past a magnet generator on the outer rim of the structure.

The whole "fan" is anchored to the ocean floor, and no dam is required. The speed and volume of water passing through the area, depth and geology of the seabed and distance to a grid connection determine the cost and output of its turbines.

Irish company chosen for Fundy tidal pilot

Just in the news this weekend:

Nova Scotia Power has picked an Irish firm to provide its first in-stream tidal turbine for an experiment in the Bay of Fundy. OpenHydro of Dublin was selected for the project, which is scheduled to begin operations in 2009.

"By selecting OpenHydro, Nova Scotia Power has chosen a company that has been most successful in demonstrating their design in ever increasing sizes. They offer a simple and environmentally friendly unit, which we believe will allow our demonstration project to be successful. When completed, this will be the largest in-stream tidal generating unit integrated into an electricity grid in the world," said James Taylor, NSP’s general manager of environmental planning and monitoring.

Last fall, NSP submitted an application for funding for the tidal power demonstration project to Sustainable Development Technology Canada. The company is awaiting further notification on funding and an environmental assessment of the project.

Looks like a tidal energy project will be underway in the Bay of Fundy sooner rather than later!

Take a look at a tidal energy in-stream turbine

Further to previous posts about tidal energy, here's an interesting artist's rendition of the type of turbine that could be used to create in-stream tidal energy in the Bay of Fundy. Look to me very much like the modern wind turbines, only submerged. (photo borrowed from Marine Current Turbines website (U.K.))

What's a 100 billion tonnes of water?

Unless you've actually seen the tides here on the Bay of Fundy, it's a bit tricky to get your head around exactly what 100 billion tonnes of seawater looks like filling and emptying the bay twice a day. Short of having an aerial timed video of the tide moving in & out over 6 hours, I guess photos are the still the best option. (I'm totally up for doing the aerial if anyone has a spare helicopter they'd like to donate to the cause). There are many pairs of high/low tide photos that help to show the volume of water in our bay. I'll track them down and post them as I find them. These two photos were at Five Islands Provincial Park near where I live.

A different type of tidal "energy"

Just had a note from the folks who operate Inn on the Cove & Spa in Saint John on the New Brunswick side of the Bay of Fundy witnessing another type of tidal energy...

Since the inn first opened some 15 years ago, a regular Scottish guest maintains the area is magical. He says the Druid lines of force intersect close to the property creating a powerful and magical strength. No matter what one might believe, it is clear that the tides have an enormous influence on us and our guests at the inn.

The pulse of the tides effect our total environment here. Every six hours and 20 minutes, more than 100 billion tonnes of water rush in or out of the bay with an energy that can be felt as well as seen. The very geology and complete environment of our area is affected by this power.

Winter weather can produce 'dragon's breath' or clouds of 'sea smoke' roiling and boiling off the surface of the massive tidal panorama. During warm summer days, cold waters of the Bay of Fundy sometimes generate fog that swirls and spills like airborne rivers over headlands and islands to cloak the area in a cotton-like blanket of mystery. Nearby the rapidly flowing St. John River also is stopped and reversed at high tide as bay waters roar inland twice daily.

The mighty tides of the Bay of Fundy influence both beauty and wellness our inn & spa on the edge of this incredible body of water. Stones smoothed by the bay's tidal energy and marine nutrient based aesthetic products are used for a special Bay of Fundy massage therapy unique to Inn on the Cove. Such treatments were first used successfully by ancestral peoples and the benefits are now being recognized and repeated.