Intake and discharge facilities of a power plant may be potentially useful for improving the coastal environment of the sea area around the plant. Our field surveys and feasibility studies on this aspect have shown that cooling water intake and discharge enhance a general circulation of seawater in a semi-enclosed sea area, and that breakwaters and other port constructions offer favorable habitats for marine organisms. We are further conducting research to develop comprehensive measures for creating a harmonious coastal environment for seaside power plant.

Potential utilization of power plant facilities

Inproved Coastal Structures
As a trial for creating improved habitat for marine organisms, we have constructed and tested an artificial algal reef with electric barriers on the sea bottom in Hokkaido, where natural seaweed beds are denuded by devouring sea urchins. It was confirmed that the electric barriers were effective to deter sea urchins, allowing kelp and sea lettuce to flourish on the experimental algal reef, while no seaweed grew on the control reef without the barriers.

Experiment on kelp reef utilizing an electric barrier