Abstract
The West Coast of North America has high potential for wave energy development. Recent estimates from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory suggest it could generate up to 40% of the combined annual electricity consumption of California, Oregon, and Washington. The PacWave South test site, located seven miles off the coast of Newport, Oregon, is expected to begin grid-connected testing of wave energy converters in 2025, which will provide valuable information that can contribute to the commercial development of the technology in the coming years.
The Pacific Marine Energy Center, with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy Water Power Technologies Office, is conducting research to better understand public views on this emerging technology on the West Coast. Our effort builds upon a previous survey conducted during the summer of 2020 of West Coast states and British Columbia, which found, despite low familiarity, positive public perceptions of wave energy.
To assess how views may have changed in the past four years, we developed and conducted a survey of California, Oregon, and Washington residents (N=2999), administered online via Qualtrics, matched on age, gender, and education to general population quotas for the three states. Respondents were asked how much they had heard or read about wave energy; their views of commonly cited risks and benefits; and their overall attitude toward wave energy development.