The California State Senate has unanimously passed California Senate Bill 605 – Wave and Tidal Energy, which directs the California Energy Commission to work with relevant agencies to study the feasibility and potential for wave and tidal energy development in the state.
The bill aims to put California on the path to developing a new source of clean, renewable energy that will help the state meet its carbon-free targets while bolstering its grid. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that wave and tidal energy has the technical feasibility to supply 30% of the United States’ energy needs.
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The NREL report also found that California’s coast has the potential wave energy resources to power 13 million homes in California. If California is to reach its targets for clean energy, it needs to draw from every possible source of clean power, including wave energy, which is one of the most abundant sources of energy that has less variability than other forms of renewable energy like solar and wind.
The new bill recognises the vast potential and benefits that wave energy provides, stating that if developed and deployed at scale, wave and tidal energy can provide both economic and environmental benefits to the state and the United States at large.
The bill has received support from a broad coalition of businesses, environmental organisations, and economic development groups, who realize the potential of wave energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create jobs, and stimulate economic growth in coastal communities.
“Onshore and offshore wave and tidal energy should be developed in a manner that protects coastal and marine ecosystems,” the bill declares.
“The state should use its authority under state programs and policies to ensure the avoidance, minimization, and mitigation of significant adverse impacts and the monitoring and adaptive management for offshore wave and tidal energy projects and their associated infrastructure.”
Former California Environmental Protection Agency Secretary and current AltaSea President and CEO Terry Tamminen also testified before the California Senate policy committees.
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“We need to continue to innovate the policies for, technologies of, and financing of new clean, renewable energy sources for our state if we hope to achieve our ambitious goals for clean air and a climate-resilient economy,” Tamminen said.
“This important measure would set California on the path towards becoming a global leader in ocean energy and developing this untapped source of clean, resilient, abundant, and renewable energy.”
