This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist and Interlochen Public Radio in northern Michigan.
Beaver Island sits in the middle of the northernmost end of Lake Michigan, not far from the Canadian border. The forested island, just a little bigger than San Francisco in size, is a popular summer destination for tourists and home to about 600 permanent residents. Getting there requires a boat or plane ride.
Getting electricity to the island isn’t as easy. Power comes from mainland Michigan through cables that cross roughly 30 miles of lake bed. Outages are common during extreme weather, or when there are problems with the sensitive wires. The devastating ice storm that walloped the state last year knocked out power to the island for weeks.
That’s got some residents hoping to see a more reliable source of power that’s generated where they live. Turns out, there’s an abundant source nearby: the waves that surround the island.
Earlier this month, researchers from the University of Michigan gathered on the shoreline to deploy two devices that convert the kinetic energy of waves into electricity. The gadgets — prototypes that look like small boats framed with PVC pipes and are about the size of a yoga ball — demonstrated their potential by powering a light bulb and charging a cell phone.
