NEWPORT, Ore. (AP) — On a cloudy late August morning, Burke Hales was on a boat a mile off the central Oregon coast, pointing to a sandy beach along the forested shoreline. It was there, the Oregon State University oceanography professor said, that the subsea cables from the first large wave energy test site in the continental U.S. will connect to land — and ultimately the local power grid.
“This is the highest power — probably the most energetic — wave condition of any of the test sites out there,” he said, as the high swells known to pound the Oregon coast rocked the boat.
The coastal waters of Oregon are shaping up to be key for advances in two forms of renewable energy: wave power and wind turbines that float. The way electricity is traditionally made is a major cause of climate change, so clean alternatives are key to addressing it.
Wave energy is at an earlier stage than floating wind, but the potential could be big. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, marine energy, a term researchers use to refer to power generated from tides, currents or waves, is the world’s largest untapped energy resource.