The Environment

We get power from the wind, the sun, the atom and the stuff that's buried beneath the Earth. All that we haven't tapped is the ocean — and Finavera's conquering that final domain. The Canadian company with Irish roots (hence the name) pioneers projects that harness the power of ocean waves to generate electricity. Electrical generators, placed on the surface of the ocean, create power as they rise and fall with the motion of the ocean — which contains some of the highest energy density of any potential renewable source. Finavera has planned a 1 megawatt demonstration plant in Makah Bay, Washington, along with further projects in Canada, Portugal and South Africa. Wave power may still be in its infancy, but there's a lot of water — and a lot of coastal cities that could take advantage of it.