Totally Tubular Dude!
From dams to watermills, hydropower has been used for thousands of years in regions all over the world. But for such an ancient idea, why isn’t it more common renewable energy source now?
While dams provide abundant clean energy, their environmental impact can be quite negative. But a new kind of hydropower is being developed that can harness nature’s tides without “making tuna” out of water critters. We launched our new partnership with Bloomberg TV by focusing on one company that’s doing this in New York East River.
Hang Ten Tidal Power!
From New York, we travel to the Pacific Northwest where Planet Forward Intern Dave Raish shows us a video – with a nifty animation – that explains how one utility plans to harness the most reliable resource on Earth – the tides. By connecting two tidal turbines – think underwater windmills – to the grid, Craig Collar of Snohomish PUD is investigating the potential of tidal power. Currently, there are only 40 sites on the planet that meet the right conditions to even generate tidal energy.
Verdant Energy
Frank Sesno reports on “Bloomberg West” about a new project in New York’s East River. Verdant Energy has started to harness energy from the rise and fall of the oceans tide. They say this project is non-invasive to the environment, but it only produces a fraction of the power New York needs.