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Local Limelight: Weeklyish Articles Of Interest
Hang Ten: Riding Wave Energy
By: Jonathan Davis
Recently I had a chance to listen to Justin Klure, a partner with PEV, short for Pacific Energy Ventures. PEV is a consulting and business development company that coordinates projects with just about everyone involved with developing to implementing a new renewable energy project, like wave energy.
That’s a lot of different types of people considering they work with policy makers on every level, developers, existing ocean users, utilities, and environmental organizations.
I’ll sum up the hour presentation on Wave Energy in 3 paragraphs.
The Oregon coast and the state were selected as a prime place to begin the process of developing the technology and trying to implement it around 2004. So, why Oregon? First, Oregon loves this type of stuff. The government here is engaged and willing to work on the issues. Plus, Oregon has a goal of 25% of its energy coming from renewable. There are also tax incentives for renewable energy companies, so as this grows, so will our economy. Also, there is an infrastructure already set up with ports, steel companies, etc. There are communities along the coast and the waves are consistently killer. Oregon State University is the hub of wave energy research and development. They formed the NNMREC, which stands for Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center.
There are a handful of devices that are being developed to capture the waves energy. The Point Absorber was the focus of Klure’s presentation. It’s basically a bunch of science wrapped up in a buoy that goes up and down, thus creating energy. Currently, about 10 buoy’s about 3 miles off the coast can power 500 homes. Ideally, a couple hundred buoy’s out of visual range from the coast would be able to power 50,000 homes. Like wind farms, there would be wave farms.
Some issues, like the development of technology, working with local governments, funding, and fishing groups will continue to be an obstacle. The ocean is huge, but the coastal region is small with many living things enjoying it. Don’t forget about the fish, birds, and other animals who live off the ocean. Animals like fisherman and sun bathers need and love the ocean. Wave energy has many different groups to please while being affordable, reliable, and environmentally safe, but the potential is huge and the waves are consistent.
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