Marine Renwable Energy - Farr High School With ERI

20th March 2017

This article is from the ERI newsletter for Spring 2017.

Twenty S1 pupils at Farr High School, Bettyhill recently took part in a marine renewable energy activity run by Pat Kieran of DSRL and Daniel Johnston of ERI. This provided a great opportunity for pupils to learn about the marine environment and renewable developments taking place within their local area. The class was split into teams to investigate where they might deploy a particular type of wave or tidal device in relation to a group of small islands. Information about ten possible sites was available to the teams with the aim of matching the characteristics of their chosen device to the site that presented the best opportunity for development. A number of calculations were required to determine the most lucrative site for deployment. However, teams also had to consider the potential impact of developing their device at each location.

The second part of the exercise comprised an Environmental Impact Assessment that allowed the pupils to score each site - the highest score reflecting the biggest effect on wildlife and tourism.

The activity is constructed so that the most lucrative sites do not coincide with the smallest environmental impacts.
This extremely bright and focused group of pupils tackled the game very well. After completing their economic and
environmental sums, each team produced a presentation that explained the technology behind their device, their results and justification of their choice of site. All the presentations were delivered convincingly. The pupils and teachers really valued the workshop which challenged the pupils across a range of subjects including Maths, Geography, English, Ecology, Engineering, Teamwork and Presentation Skills.

For further information contact daniel.johnston@uhi.ac.uk

To see the full Spring 2017 Elements newsletter go to -
http://eri.ac.uk/category/eri-newsletters/