Annapolis Royal Generating Station

The Annapolis Royal Generating Station is a tidal power generating station in the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the only tidal generating station in North America and one of the few in the world.[1] It is located upstream of Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. It generates about 30 million kilowatt hours per year, enough for 4500 houses.[2] Peak output is 20 megawatts.

Annapolis Tidal Station
The Annapolis Tidal Station at high tide.
Official nameAnnapolis Tidal Station
CountryCanada
LocationAnnapolis Royal, Nova Scotia
Coordinates44°45′7″N 65°30′40″W
StatusOperational
Commission date1984
Owner(s)Nova Scotia Power
Primary fuel
Tidal power station
TypeTidal barrage
Power generation
Nameplate capacity20 MW
Annual net output50 GWh
External links
Website www.nspower.ca/en/home/about-us/how-we-make-electricity/renewable-electricity/annapolis-tidal-station.aspx 
CommonsRelated media on Commons

A causeway on the Annapolis River creates a reservoir which powers a water turbine. Sluice gates in the causeway allow the reservoir to be refilled by the incoming tide, and retain the water in the reservoir when the tide recedes. Power is only generated when the tide is out, for about five hours, twice a day.

Construction began in 1980, and it opened in 1984, it was constructed by Nova Scotia Power, at the time a provincial crown corporation.

The decision to build the facility was partly prompted by the promise of federal funding for this alternative energy project, and the existence of a rock-filled causeway which had been built on the Annapolis River in 1960 by the Maritime Marshlands Reclamation Authority to block the Bay of Fundy tides from entering the river to replace the function of the existing dykes along the river banks. The causeway houses the power house and sluice gates.

The blocking of water flow by the causeway has resulted in increased river bank erosion on both the upstream and downstream sides. The causeway is also known as a trap for marine life. In 2004, a mature Humpback whale swam through the open sluice gate at slack tide, ending up trapped for several days in the upper part of the river before eventually finding its way out.[3]

References

  1. "Annapolis Tidal Station". Nova Scotia Power. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  2. "Tidal Power". Government of Canada. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  3. "Whale still drawing crowds at N.S. river". The Globe and Mail. Canadian Press. 29 August 2004.
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