Tidal model

Tidal stream farms, in which electricity is generated by turbines from regions of strong tidal flow, may influence the natural balance of marine sands, according to researchers at Bangor University.

In contrast to a tidal barrage, tidal stream turbines harvest the energy of the tides in a similar way to wind turbines. But what is significantly different from wind turbines is the environment in which tidal stream turbines operate and their potential to interact with their environment.

Dr Simon Neill and Prof Alan Davies from the School of Ocean Sciences at Bangor University, along with colleagues from Edinburgh University and Plymouth Marine Laboratory, developed a computer model to investigate the environmental impact of extracting energy from the Bristol Channel, one of several proposed sites in the UK for harvesting tidal streams.

They found that a large tidal stream turbine farm would have a significant and widespread influence on the natural transport of sands in the Bristol Channel.