New England's tidal power

The world's first commercial-scale and grid-connected tidal-stream generator – SeaGen – in Strangford Lough., Nothern Ireland. The strong wake shows the power in the tidal current.

Adapted from Robert Whitcomb's "Digital Diary,'' in GoLocal24.com:

The old saw was that New England has virtually no sources of energy. Of course what that meant was no fossil fuel (except for tiny amounts of coal in parts of southern New England). But it does have lots of wind power,  good solar-power resources and not insignificant river-water power. The last help make possible New England’s leading role in starting the American Industrial Revolution.

And, especially from Massachusetts Bay north, where the tides get progressively stronger and there are hundreds of estuaries,  New England has substantial tidal-power potential, too. And so it was heartening to hear Avery Brookins’s interview on Rhode Island Public Radio with marine conservationist Jonathan White. Mr. White is the author of Tides: The Science and Spirit Of the Ocean, about the promise and challenges associated with installing tide mills. To hear his interview, hit this link: