Makah Bay Offshore Wave Energy Pilot Project Advances

Finavera Renewables press release

"The Environmental Assessment, known as a PDEA, (the ‘Assessment’), prepared by Devine Tarbell & Associates, a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) qualified assessor, concluded that “the Makah Bay Project represents the first of its kind pilot wave energy project in the nation to involve the FERC licensing process. The assessment resulted in Findings of No Significant Environmental Effects from the proposed pilot project” AquaEnergy is following the FERC’s Alternative Licensing Process and is filing this Preliminary Draft Environmental Assessment (PDEA) with an application for an original FERC license. This filing is imminent, and will make the Makah Bay Pilot Project the most advanced wave energy project in the United States. Completion of the PDEA was made possible with the financial support from Snohomish PUD, and Puget Sound Energy along with the support from Evans-Hamilton and Fugro Pelagos. The Alternative Licensing Process (ALP) combines into a single process the pre-filing consultation and environmental review processes under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Typically, FERC’s license application process for a power plant consists of a multi-year process that AquaEnergy has now completed, including extensive environmental and technical studies, public meetings, stakeholder meetings, and other required actions. Since the project inception in 2001, AquaEnergy conducted meetings with environmental groups, fisherman’s associations, and commercial and recreational users of Makah Bay. AquaEnergy’s model approach involving the public was a result of early action in ocean energy project development. The PDEA process examined and assessed potential impact of the demonstration project on the oceanographic, geophysical, and biological conditions of the Makah Bay. The PDEA conclusion of a Findings of No Significant Environmental Effects demonstrates that ocean energy conversion is well positioned to generate energy without negative impacts on the environment. The PDEA can be downloaded from AquaEnergy web site: www.aquaenergygroup.com "