Can The Bay Of Fundy Help Fight Climate Change With Tidal Energy?
HALIFAX – All over the world, people are hurrying to find new ways to harness energy that is less harmful to the planet than burning fossil fuels. Renewable energy such as wind and solar has gained immense popularity and support, and nuclear energy is also part of the mix. But in Atlantic Canada, there may be a unique source of power connected to the ocean: The Bay of Fundy.
Companies looking to harness the power created by tidal movements in the ocean are zeroing in on the unique tides created in the Bay. Back in 2010, the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE) was created in Parrsboro, N.S., to study the potential power of tidal energy, and encourage companies to come to the province to test their turbines and other technology.
“We can often get focused on the technology of tidal energy, but the impetus for us doing this is to create a cleaner environment for the future,” says FORCE general manager Tony Wright.
“I think there are a lot of prospects for tidal (energy) and what it can offer. As a source of renewables, it certainly has advantages over other forms of renewable energy, in terms of its predictability.”
FORCE is particularly interested in a portion of the Bay of Fundy called the Minas Passage, where the currents are particularly powerful.
But how does one go about harnessing energy from the ocean? Wright compares it to a windmill, but instead of capturing power from the wind, tidal technology captures power from the moving tides.
“If you think of a windmill on shore, this is essentially the same type of technology underwater. It’s harnessing the natural flow of ocean currents, and in the Minas Passage it’s very symmetrical- you have an incoming tide in one direction and an outcoming tide almost 180 degrees in the other direction.”
In The Bay of Fundy, the tidal movement has been measured at five-six metres per second at its peak, and currents of almost 20 kms an hour.
“That’s unheard of anywhere else,” said Wright.
And we know that the Bay of Fundy can produce power. Back in 2017, a company was able to deploy a turbine that generated electricity. But before tidal energy can become a mainstay in our society, a lot more work has to be done.
“We generated power at FORCE already, now we have to do it continuously,” said Wright.
“I think it comes down to the viability of the technology. It clearly needs to be established that the technology can operate day-after-day, year-after-year…we also need to demonstrate that it can be done affordably.”
Wright said a company is currently testing a turbine in the Grand Passage in the Bay of Fundy, but that turbine isn’t cabled yet. FORCE expects it to be cabled in the near future.
Of course, working with some of the highest tides in the world has proven to be a challenge, and proponents of tidal energy are still working on systems that will be effective and safe. FORCE is also studying the effects turbines have on marine life in the Bay of Fundy.
“To date, we haven’t seen an impact, but we’re just getting going; so I don’t think it’s fair to say that there are no impacts,” said Wright. “Where we’re at now, we need to do better in terms of the ability to detect these impacts.”
Recently, the federal government announced $9.4-million in funding for tidal energy research. FORCE will receive $2-million of that allotment. FORCE will use that money to further research the impact tidal technology has on fish and marine life.