[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/EW-08-21-14-Tides-in-the-Bay-of-Fundy-.mp3|titles=EW 08-21-14 Tides in the Bay of Fundy]
The Bay of Fundy is on the Atlantic coast on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in Canada. It is the site of several national and provincial parks as well as the location of major ports for the pulp and paper industry. But the Bay of Fundy’s greatest claim to fame is that it may have the largest tidal range in the world.
Tidal range – the difference in height between high and low tide – varies depending upon the volume of water adjacent to the coast and on the details of local geography. Geography can act as a funnel that that amplifies the tide. The highest tidal range in the Bay of Fundy occurs in the Minas Basin, where the mean spring range is nearly 48 feet. The extreme range there is over 53 feet.
Given this, it is no surprise that the Bay of Fundy is a hotbed of activity in the world of tidal energy. There are multiple ocean power projects planned or ongoing in the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy test site. Black Rock Tidal Power plans to install a 2.5 megawatt system in two phases starting in the spring of 2016. OpenHydro plans to deliver a pair of 2 megawatt turbines in 2015. A pair of ocean energy developers, Nautricity and Fundy Tidal, have teamed up to construct a 500 kilowatt tidal power project next year.
The rising tide in the Bay of Fundy will soon produce lots of electricity.
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Web Links
Nova Scotia selects marine power developers for Bay of Fundy project
Photo, posted July 22, 2007, courtesy of Kid Cowboy via Flickr.
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Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.