Ocean tides flowing in and out on a coastline can be converted into power using turbines just as windmills turn air currents into power and hyrdro-electric dams turn river flows into power.

The Puget Sound (Seattle) area has been undergoing a bit of a land rush when it comes to tidal power, with various entities and agencies working quickly to begin commercial tidal power operations (”Puget Sound area leads the charge to tidal energy“). And now, according to an article in last Thursday’s Seattle Post Intelligencer, expensive sensors are being deployed all over the region to map tidal flows so that appropriate generators can be constructed, deployed, and hooked into the local power grid.

Buried deep between the waves, it will be difficult for most people to argue that they are ruining their views (unlike wind power turbines). However, I haven’t heard much yet about the potential impact on sea creatures — what provisions will be made for when a whale meets a turbine, one wonders?