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BS: Tidal Power in Maine!
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BS: Tidal Power in Maine! |
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Subject: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 04:11 PM BRAVO! |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Bobert Date: 18 Sep 12 - 04:14 PM Word on the street is that it's killing off the snail darter population... B;~) |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Ed T Date: 18 Sep 12 - 04:49 PM ""The Annapolis Tidal Power Plant came online in 1984. It has a capacity of 20 megawatts and a daily output of roughly 80-100 megawatt hours, depending on the tides"". Annapolis tidal power The current Nova Scotia approach is to test the various tidal turbine designs from around the world - in an area with the worlds highest tides (Nearby BurntCoat Head has the world's highest tides (Some tides in Ungava Bay is close to this record) . The tidal forces are so great at this location that the first turbine design only lasted a few weeks, and had to be removed because of severe damage from the forces. Tidal demonstration project |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Charley Noble Date: 18 Sep 12 - 05:10 PM Yes, the results in Maine are very encouraging, and should have limited impact on sea life and the sea fisheries. I only wonder how long the hardware will survive the corrosive salt water environment. Charley Noble |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 05:23 PM Seems that there is some contention about the use of dams in such projects and who was the "first" to harness "true" tidal power. I say it don't matter squat. If tidal power can work without messing up the wildlife, let's get at it. Same for wind power... if it does kill millions of birds, fan me baby! Oh... yeah... wind power does kill a lot of birds... tidal power may kill a lot of fish... fuck em, who needs something to eat when these power sources can generate enough power to keep our computers running? |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: dick greenhaus Date: 18 Sep 12 - 05:23 PM Cost per KWH over projected life? Reistance to barnacle growth? |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:01 PM Maybe I'm not seeing something, but how wind turbines kill a lot of birds is a bit of a mystery to me. For one thing, as far as migratory birds are concerned, their flight paths are far above (hundreds of feet and sometimes higher) the tallest wind turbine towers. And even in a high wind (which often keeps birds grounded) the rotors are turning so slowly that only the slowest and stupidest of birds would ever be smacked by one. [Which might be an example of Darwin in action.] This is one of the big howls against wind turbines, but I sure don't see it, myself. #### A few decades back, Omni magazine (devoted to science, but now defunct, I believe) had a series of articles on the possibility of putting huge turbines in the ocean, in tidal flows and in such places as the Gulf Stream. There was an immediate howl about fish—and whales—getting caught and killed by them. The writer of the articles responded that this objection would be easily disposed of by putting a fine-mesh screen over the turbines, which would allow the free flow of water, but stop even small fish. And whales would be more of a danger to the turbines than the turbines would be to them. Also, a whale is a fairly intelligent creature, and is not stupid enough to try to go through a turbine. When a really good idea comes along, all kinds of people can come up with spurious objections. E.g., "Wind turbines spoil the view!" I dunno. To me, the design of wind turbines looks esthetically pleasing, and the slow spin of the rotors is quite stately. Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:09 PM So how come the people down in Albert County see a shitload of dead birds under the turbines? Maybe the birds here are stupid. |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:12 PM What constitutes a "shitload?" Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:18 PM Gnu, cast you eye over this: CLICKY Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Bill D Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:22 PM Telephone poles and power lines 'spoil my view' on my own street...but with them, I can see after dark and type this. |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:25 PM Obviously, the people in Albert County are stupid. My bad. |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:35 PM Oh, BTW, the people in Albert County are afraid of gas fracking... silly twits! |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:40 PM Now, fracking I AM against. Again, a NON-RENEWABLE resource. And the impact on ground water, not to mention, the proliferation of small, local earthquakes in some areas where fracking has been taking place. Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: TIDAL POWER IN MAINE! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 06:54 PM But, the statistics show that fracking is warm and fuzzy. Surely you won't ignore the statistics? A few birds here and there and a few people here and there? What's the difference, eh? Then again, those people are from Albert County.... not all that bright, apparently. So, who cares about them... their livestock... their children... the birds they used to watch? Statiscally speaking, they ain't worth fuck all. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: Charley Noble Date: 18 Sep 12 - 08:06 PM The tidal turbines in Maine revolve very slowly so that it's unlikely that any marine life would be injured. The demonstration dam in Annapolis Royal, NS, does generate quite a bit of energy but it does have a massive environmental impact, and it does interfere with marine traffic for hours each day. Charley Noble |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 08:10 PM Oh, yeah... the telephone and power lines in back of my house are great places for birds to perch. They don't spoil my view at all. They enhance my bird watching and photography . And they don't chop birds into little pieces either. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: Ed T Date: 18 Sep 12 - 08:11 PM Tapping into tidal power isn't new. Many years ago grain mills were powered by tides, and tapping into the tides to generate electricity begin somewhere around the 1960s. In more recent years, advances have been made in differnt types of turbines that get the job done efficiently, more cost effective (looking more attractive as power rates rise) and with fewer potential threats to marine life. In some cases, like in the Bay of Fundy, significant tidal forces present a challenge-but a good potential renewable power reward. While there a few projects in different parts of the world, there is still plenty of room for technological advancements before it becomes widespread. I am not offended by the appearance of the newer variety of windmills. Some folks feel they ruin their views. But, considering the alternatives-the small change gives a big reward to the environment. It's unrealistic to expect that a viewplane will remain the same forever. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 08:23 PM I don't care about the view either. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: GUEST,999 Date: 18 Sep 12 - 08:29 PM Before people arrived, the world was void, and without form. Now, it's the opposite. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 09:02 PM A fellow I worked with some years ago lived down in the south end of Seattle. He put a wind turbine in his back yard, and lo! was able to meet all of his electricity needs. Lights, refrigerator, stove, microwave oven, television, stereo, computer, the works. In fact, his City Light meter was running backwards! He was putting electricity back into the system. City Light got all bent out of shape about no more checks from Randy. But his bills kept saying that he didn't owe anything. Negative reading on his meter! He live down near the north end of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. They told him he couldn't build a tower there because of the planes landing and taking off. Which was asinine, because any plane passing low enough to clip Randy's tower would be in serious trouble already! He told them to go take a flying (expletive deleted). So they called the FAA and the CAB. They came out, looked the situation over, and asked Randy to put a light on the tower (which, incidentally, was no taller that the telephone poles in the neighborhood), so Randy shrugged and complied. Then, City Light tried to get the neighbors on his case about an eyesore in the neighborhood. The neighbors dropped in on Randy and asked him about the wind turbine—and some of them went away thinking about putting up turbines of their own! By now, Randy was getting a little annoyed, so he looked up a few laws—and wound up charging City Light for the power he was putting back into the system! Instead of having an electric bill to pay, Randy receives a nice check from City Light every two months! Last I heard, there were other wind turbines (privately owned and installed) popping up around his neighborhood. City Light doesn't like to talk about it. I am given to snicker. . . . Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: Charley Noble Date: 18 Sep 12 - 09:23 PM Round about 1900 there were at least a dozen tidal mill dams in and around my home on Georgetown Island. They were the principal source of power for sawing lumber and carding wool. I've heard some neighbors object to the bass thump of the wind turbines but they have to be living well within a mile of the site. I still object to nuclear power plants, even though after the Fukushima disaster the industry will learn from its mistakes and make them safer... The Japanese are now committed to retiring all their nuclear plants when their licenses run out. Charley Noble |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: gnu Date: 18 Sep 12 - 10:13 PM Ya don't have to live within a mile on a cold cloudless night to hear them... but, what if you do? Just move? Do you just move away from the frackers too? It's all well and good if you don't live next door and you don't see the dead birds or hear the turbines. I am not saying it isn't a good source of energy. I am saying it is not perfect and that there needs to be caution and consideration. Don't just say "this or that" is the way to go and give the energy companies carte blanche. They'll install a turbine, a reactor and a high pressure injection system up yer ass. They'll blow you away. Careful what ya "vote for"... especially if ya haven't done yer research. Statistics? I think nuclear power wins at that, no? If we are just talkin statistics and not reality for individuals affected???? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Tidal Power in Maine! From: Don Firth Date: 18 Sep 12 - 11:05 PM I've been doing the research, gnu. This is a subject I've been interested in for quite some time. Don Firth |
