Wave Energy, "A slow and gradual process"
By Erica Rush, KCBY NewsREEDSPORT, Ore. -Ocean Power Technology will soon be testing the tides by building a $4 mill buoy off the coast of Gardner. Currently they're in the process of getting the necessary permits and license to keep this project afloat. MultimediaTo get a feel on how this project is coming along, the Port of Umpqua in Reedsport invited OPT Representative, George Wolfe to come speak on the matter. He informed the public that they have filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission at the beginning of this month. This summer, they're proposing to put in a single 150-kilowatt Buoy off the coast, near Gardner and through a slow and gradual process, evaluate the project. "This is essentially to prove that the technology works, it works as we think it does and to determine and get environmental information out of its operation in the ocean," said Wolfe. "And that will then form the basis for moving ahead to the next phase." OPT will conduct at least a half dozen environmental and marine impact studies before FERC would consider approving them for phase two, which would include nine more buoys of greater power that would be transferred to the International Paper Mill Site in Gardner and then feed into power grids managed by PNGC Power. According to Wolfe, "They generate more power, 500-kilowatts v. 150-kilowatts. That what means is in about the same space, we will have almost 3 to 3.5 times the amount of energy being generated with this next generation buoy." And aside from generating power, Wolfe says jobs too will also increase, with as many as 200 positions made with the installation and monitoring of the first buoy. |
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February 9, 2012
- Roseburg, Oregon
