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A class of Saskatoon students will play a role in educating the public about the city's new green energy park.
The Aden Bowman Earthkeepers class is designing promotional materials for Saskatoon's "green energy park," a complex that will include a wind turbine, methane gas collection facility and a turbo-expander, which will collect energy from a SaskEnergy natural gas regulating station on the site. As part of the collaborative project, students also met with graduate students from the University of Saskatchewan school of environment and sustainability to learn more about green energy.
"I thought it was a great opportunity to make our learning experiences in the school more meaningful. The project is incredibly relevant because it's actually happening," said teacher Jared Regier. Regier leads the innovative five-credit Earthkeeper course, which has Grade 10 students immersed in the subject of sustainability, self-sufficiency and community development for a semester.Next week, their work on the city's green energy park educational materials will be one of 17 Saskatchewan projects recognized by the Regional Centre of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development, an organization acknowledged by the United Nations University for its contribution to education for sustainable development.
"It's really important to work with future leaders and give them the skills necessary to provide a sustainable future for everyone," said Kevin Hudson, alternative energy engineer for the City of Saskatoon. Hudson spent time in the classroom with the Grade 10 students to answer questions about the project, and on a Monday morning the students were busy questioning him on the specifics of the proposed wind turbine project.
"I like the idea of having a windmill in the city, to show how it's feasible," said Anthony Barss, a student in the Earthkeepers program. Barss and his partner Charlie Freeman were busy in front of the com-puter working on a brochure about the proposed wind turbine.
"It's good to give back to your community and give them more information and help them to understand how the simplest things can make you more sustainable," said Freeman.
The project has met with criticism, but students say they're in favour of the energy park.
"We're not doing much with that space other than dumping garbage on it. Why wouldn't we use that to our advantage?" said Freeman.
The wind turbine portion of the energy park could be on board as early as summer 2013. A test tower is up at the landfill, which is measuring wind speeds. So far research has shown the project will power between 450 and 600 homes.
"Saskatchewan residents have among the highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita in the world. Part of the focus is on why these types of projects are important," said Hudson. With all components on board, the project has the potential to power about 6,000 homes, generate a profit and provide up to 10 per cent of the city's electricity.
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