St. Rose’s Senior High School Akwatia Wins 2024 Eastern Regional Edition of Renewable Energy Challenge

St. Rose’s Senior High School in the Denkyembour District of the Eastern Region has emerged the winner of the 2024 Eastern Regional Edition of the Energy Commission’s Senior High School Renewable Energy Challenge.

The challenge, which seeks to promote energy research and development among senior high school students, saw St. Rose’s Senior High School outperform other schools in the region, scoring the highest marks to emerge victorious.

The Energy Commission’s Renewable Energy Challenge in senior high schools seeks to promote innovation in renewable energy and facilitate mentorship programs to help students develop their ideas into viable and game-changing solutions. This year’s challenge is themed “Application of Renewable Energy Technologies in Solving Land Degradation and Water Pollution.”

The Renewable Energy Challenge is an initiative that not only fosters innovation among students but also aligns with the Commission’s goal of sustainable energy development. The Commission will continue to support this initiative, which encourages young minds to develop practical solutions to address environmental issues.

“The challenge was born out of the Commission’s mandate under the Renewable Energy Act of 2011, Act 832, which seeks to promote the development and efficient use of renewable energy through public education, training, and regulation of entrepreneurship in the sector. It also aims to facilitate the mainstreaming of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and programs into the curriculum of educational and training institutions.”

The project presented by St. Rose’s is a simple device that uses solar energy to collect plastic waste in water bodies. The system has a solar panel connected to a battery (not capacitor) to store energy for operation during low sunlight periods. The system utilizes rotating fans (not funs) underneath. When placed in a water body containing plastic bags, the fans rotate, causing the plastic bags to move towards and be collected by a conveyor belt (not escalator) with a non-slip mat. The collected plastic bags are then deposited into a collection chamber for recycling.

Congratulations to St. Rose’s Senior High School!