Scotland To Harness Tidal Energy

Happy Tartan Day!



Scotland's first large-scale tidal energy project is to be installed on the island of Islay. Members of the community-owned Islay Energy Trust have backed creation of the commercial-sized project, which is to be built in collaboration with Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen.

Scotland's fifth-largest island will become home to between four and six turbines with a total capacity of around 2 megawatts. Developing the turbines is expected to cost up to £750,000 and should take around three years to complete. Once in operation, revenue would be generated from the sale of electricity.

'It's a very innovative business model,' said Philip Maxwell, chairman of the Islay Energy Trust. 'Instead of the conventional route of involving a large energy company or turbine manufacturer, the community is taking the initiative.

They are going to need something to power their hair-dryers at max heat setting if what I have read about the ocean currents around there is true. Apparently the great conveyor belt current that brings warm ocean temperatures up there is losing it meaning that they may start to experience arctic climatic conditions more befitting of their latitude. Scotland is now comparitively mild(!!!)

According to the Goracles, it's gonna be a tropical paradise soon. And if you believe that one...

It's pretty interesting what all is going on in Scotland. They also have huge oil reserves. Could turn out to be a place to watch geopolitically even.

if the "community" owns the generators, then who are they selling the energy too?

as usual stupid assholes that want to power their hairdryers are going to get their way and they don't care to consider that barricading a water-way will damage the ecosystem by sediment buildup and desalinization not to mention decimation of the fish population by the machines and blockage.

as long as you don't hear Al Gore making a fuss about it, then apparently it's eco-friendly.

wow...only 750 000 pounds.....cheap