Ecological footprint

An environmentally neutral design

The turbine, being a collector and not a propeller, is activated by the pressure field generated by the marine current. This obstacle leads to the generation of areas of overspeed around the rotor. This external overspeed, together with the rotation speed of the turbine, results in the absence of any observed damaged to fauna.

In situ acoustic measurements conducted by Ifremer during the “SABELLA D03” trials demonstrated the absence of any significant noise pollution liable to affect both marine mammals and fish. The various reconnaissance surveys conducted by divers on the experimentation site confirmed the absence of disturbance to fauna.

Furthermore, on all the static structures of the machine which did not require protection against colonisation by marine concretions, nature rapidly lay claim to the surfaces, and the structure became an artificial reef conducive to biotope development.