A vast 14-mile tidal power station is planned for the coast of England – by the same designer as the London Eye
Did you know that the UK’s national energy consumption is expected to grow by nearly a third by 2035? That’s a pretty substantial leap, which is why Marks Barfield Architects has come up with an equally substantial solution: the West Somerset Lagoon project, a vast tidal power station arching 14 miles over the Bristol Channel.
Architect Julia Barfield, who is best known for designing the London Eye, is part of the team currently working on the proposal. She told the Guardian that it is a direct response to the rise of AI, and the extraordinary demand for energy that it causes, saying: ‘If the decision is to go ahead with adopting more and more AI… then it is going to be better with a renewable energy source’.
In this case, that renewable source is the Bristol Channel, or the tidal power that it can generate. A huge semicircular barrage would extend 14 miles from Minehead to Watchet and contain 125 underwater turbines, generating roughly enough energy to power two million homes. Tidal is better for the planet than fossil-fuels, but it’s also generally more reliable than solar or wind alternatives.
While the primary purpose of the station would be to generate clean electricity, the designers also say that it could become a public space. A path could be built along the top of the project, creating a pretty legendary walking or running route for locals bold enough to face the Celtic Sea breeze.
Image: Marks Barfield Architects
Lidos, a water sports marina, oyster farms, an amphitheatre, and an observation tower have also been discussed as potential additions to the structure. Rachel Gilmour, MP for Tiverton and Minehead, described the plan as ‘absolutely iconic’ and supports making it a reality.
So will all of this actually come to fruition? At the moment, the government has not commented directly on the project, but a spokesperson did say that it is ‘open to considering well-developed proposals for harnessing the tidal range energy’.
All in all, the estimated cost for the West Somerset Lagoon is currently around £11 billion, but proponents of the project argue it is a worthwhile investment and that its 120-year lifespan would, in the long run, make it cheaper than alternatives like nuclear power.
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