As the general population becomes more aware of our environmental challenges and the emerging energy crisis certain words have become popular in the media.  Not too many years ago words like sustainable, green or renewable would bring snickers from people who thought the environmental movement and search for alternative energy sources were just hoaxes perpetuated by those with purely political agendas.  Not anymore.  Just about everywhere you look in media and advertising people are talking green and sustainability.

One unfortunate side effect of having meaningful words become marketing buzzwords is that what these words mean and represent is often lost in a barrage of advertising and shallow quasi-news reporting.

The words sustainable and sustainability are powerful words with meaning that reveals great wisdom for the future of humankind.  It is important that we preserve the power of these words to help us understand what we must do to provide a high quality of life in the years ahead.  It would be tragic to be seduced by the spin doctors that because we put a green or sustainable label on something that we are properly addressing our long-term challenges.

About 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, in the forms of oceans, seas, and lakes. Now a new vision is turning the open sea into a vast energy source, by utilizing devices that harness the power of waves and tides. This resource can provide a tsunami of benefits for our economy and environment.

            Wave generators are buoy-like structures that create electricity from the multi dimensional movement of the ocean. Because these generators are in the ocean, they require structures capable of coping with strong seas and corrosive salt water. Due to neutral effects on the ecosystem, this is the primary reason for continued development of an economic design.

            Because of Oregon’s coastline, there is a massive potential for wave and tidal generators. The biggest complication will be in developing a stable, but economically feasible design. This could be the wave of the future, in Oregon’s renewable energy.