The world's fossil fuel stores are dwindling whilst the amounts of CO2 being poured out into the atmosphere is increasing. What we need is an energy source that doesn't pollute, doesn't increase CO2 levels and is renewable. Yes, most people know of solar and wind power, but do you know about wave power?

Wave power creates energy by harnessing the power of the waves of the sea and turning it into energy. 75% of the Earth's surface is covered by water and yet only limited research has been done on extracting energy from this mighty natural resource.

There are now a few companies who are now operating wave generators. These seem to be especially around the Scottish coast. Such as, the Limpet plant on the island of Islay, It's an oscillating water column (OWC) WEC designed and operated by Wavegen.

There are many different methods, called Wave Energy Converters (WEC's). Visit the EMEC (European Marine Energy Centre) to see these methods in action: www.emec.org.uk


One of the most effective generators is an oscillating water column. In this, there is a water of column, topped by air as it's open to the sea. The waves go through the generator, causing the water in the chamber to rise and fall. By 'rising and falling', the air is forced in and out of a hole in the top of the chamber. A turbine (like a big fan) is placed in front of the hole. The air causes it to spin, therefore creating energy. Huzzah!

All renewable energies have their advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of wave power are great as the energy needed to power the generator is free, the generator is low-maintainance, and it can produce a great deal of energy WITHOUT putting any greenhouse gases into our air, and polluting it.

The disadvantages of wave power are that there is the cost of building the generators, still quite a bit of research to do and that the energy source can be unpredictable, as no wave is the same. WEC's also need a suitable site. Some generators can be noisy with the air going in and out of the hole, but waves are pretty noisy anyhow. The generators need to be able to withstand rough weather. They certainly don't destroy the aesthetics of the landscape as much as wind turbines do and they can generate more power.



With all of this evidence, why aren't we building more of them? There are some companies, such as Oceanlinx and Wavegen, who are now moving out of the trial and development stage and are now getting the WEC's plugged into the grid. I say that's not enough.

We need our governments behind these manufacturers to ensure a viable power source for the future. Wave power is going to benefit our environment in many ways.

Everyone is discussing how to solve our fossil fuel problems, well...I think we've just found part of the solution!

Information sourced from:
http://www.wavegen.co.uk
http://home.clara.net/darvill/altenerg/wave.htm
http://www.oceanlinx.com/
http://www.emec.org.uk

Images, thanks to:
Islay webcam and photo of WEC: www.wavegen.co.uk