California Energy Commission presents draft mapping of wave and tidal resources; finds nearshore distributed applications more feasible than utility‑scale

The California Energy Commission on Friday told the Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Marine Planning Committee that state staff have nearly completed a phase‑1 feasibility evaluation of wave and tidal energy under Senate Bill 605 and are moving into a phase‑2 assessment that maps areas that could be suitable for marine energy deployment.

The presentation: Danielle (no last name given in the packet), an offshore renewable energy planner with the California Energy Commission (CEC), described mapping and analysis that the agency has produced so far. She said the CEC’s phase‑1 work — published as a consultant report and summarized in the state Integrated Energy Policy Report — concluded that wave energy resources off California are regionally significant but technical and logistical constraints mean nearshore distributed systems and small‑scale devices are most feasible in the near term.

“Wave energy is highest off the north coast of California, whereas tidal energy is really only available near…