Congratulations to Thurles Presentation Secondary School, the overall winners, who were amongst some 1,500 students to enter the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s competition to find just “One good idea,”” to aid tackling climate change and further promote energy efficiency.
Allowing adults the opportunity to test-drive Electric Cars and convincing local shops to sell Strogs (Straw Briquettes / Logs) were amongst the initiatives highlighted by our winning Thurles Generation Green team.
While most people are aware of the existence of Electric Cars, not everyone are familiar with Strogs. Strogs are briquettes evolving from harvested dried straw fed into a hopper and milled. Under the heat of compression, the straws cell walls melt, thus binding the product together. When cooled, the logs are then trimmed, collated and packed ready for use. Once Strogs have been burned, the remaining ash is used as a garden or plant fertiliser, thus completing the cycle of a renewable energy source.
One sixteen year old transition year student, Emma Kerwick, explained how people in general were ignorant of real facts regarding energy efficiency, due mainly to a lack of proper clear information being made easily and readily available.
Another sixteen year old transition year student, Mary Claire Hanafin, stated that switching to local energy alternatives, such as Strogs, would greatly help the Irish economy and the potential use for clean energy had not yet been fully realised here in Ireland.
The school has received a €1000 prize fund and the project will now represent Ireland in the European Commission’s EU4Energy awards.
Leave a Reply