Tidal Energy presentation

Graham Davies gave this informative presentation on the possible future employment of tidal flow to produce power for this island of ours, and at a cost which would be very favourable.

As well as the financial benefit of sustainable energy production, there are also many other aspects to recommend this as a serious contender for development.

Because tides are predictable, they offer a manageable resource, and one that does not cause  polution. One worry expressed by the club were that the turbines used for generating power would cause damage to the fish population, but were assured that the equipment is now "fish friendly"(they get a kiss just for passing through the gates)

An example of a working tidal gateway was given - La Rance in France. This was commissioned by General DeGaul and ruined the wildlife in the estuary (The estuary was drained for construction)

After 50 years, the system produces te cheapest electricity in France, does not polute , and the estuary has returned to the pre-construction diversity of wildlife above and below water. Such devastating destruction of habitat would be unthinkable today, but it just reminds us that Mother Nature can be remarkably resilient.

Advantages were given as : Clean, predictable, cheap(eventually), can be used for flood control and because traffic can cross on top of the gateway, it can have benefits in the saving of road transport cost (and tereby the associated emmissions).

In the UK we have been using tidal energy for many hundred years, and since we are second only to Canada in our potential for energy production from this source, Graham postulated that now is the right time to invest in this technology.