Advantages of Tidal Energy1)  It is an inexhaustible source of energy. 2)  Tidal energy is environment friendly energy and doesn't produce greenhouse gases. 3)  As 71% of Earth’s surface is covered by water, there is scope to generate this energy on large scale. 4)  We can predict the rise and fall of tides as they follow cyclic fashion. 5) Efficiency of tidal power is far greater as compared to coal, solar or wind energy. Its efficiency is around 80%. 6)  Although cost of construction of tidal power is high but maintenance costs are relatively low. 7)  Tidal Energy doesn’t require any kind of fuel to run. 8)  The life of tidal energy power plant is very long. 9)  The energy density of tidal energy is relatively higher than other renewable energy sources.

Disadvantages of Tidal Energy 1)  Cost of construction of tidal power plant is high. 2)  There are very few ideal locations for construction of plant and they too are localized to coastal regions only. 3)  Intensity of sea waves is unpredictable and there can be damage to power generation units. 4)  Influences aquatic life adversely and can disrupt migration of fish. 5)  The actual generation is for a short period of time. The tides only happen twice a day so electricity can be produced only for that time. 6)  Frozen sea, low or weak tides, straight shorelines, low tidal rise or fall are some of the obstructions. 7)  This technology is still not cost effective and more technological advancements are required to make it commercially viable. 8)  Usually the places where tidal energy is produced are far away from the places where it is consumed. This transmission is expensive and difficult. Tidal Energy is thus a clean source of energy and doesn’t require much land or other resources as in harnessing energy from other sources. However, the energy generated is not much as high and low tides occur only twice a day and continuous energy production is not possible.

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Each day the ocean surface rises and falls because of tides. The highest point of the rise is called high tide. The lowest point is called low tide. Most places have two high tides and two low tides each day. Tides happen because of the gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun on ocean water. The Moon has a much greater impact on tides than the Sun because it is much closer. The Moon pulls water that is closest to it making a high tide on the side of the Earth closest to the Moon and there is a high tide on the opposite side of the Earth too. Low tides happen in places between the high tides. Because Earth is rotating, the tides change over time. The difference between high tide and low tide is called the tidal range. The tidal range can be as little as a few centimeters to as much as several meters depending on the shape of the ocean floor. In Canada's Bay of Fundy the tidal range is very large – 16 meters.