High School Eco-Team scores solar panel grant

The high school is driving towards a greener future with a new grant to harness the sun.

Led by the school's Eco-Team, the Haliburton Highlands Secondary School is adding their first solar panel to power their field scoreboard after receiving approval for a Green Apple School Program grant worth $1,000.

This is an initiative funded by Metro to encourage students to participate in the development of a healthier environment.

Eco-Team member and project leader Puru Shah, who has been with the team for two years, said this was a group effort that included his president Vicky Bukta and school advisor Amy Klose to address the complication of powering the field's scoreboard.

This is a legacy project that can serve as an example to the school and the community, he said.

"It's a good initiative to show the students that we can do something green," he said. "It's a challenge for next year and the year after to say, 'top this.'" The balance of the project exceeded the grant total and the school approved to cover the $200 shortfall.This grant program is expected to award up to $1 million to schools.

For next year, the Grade 11 student said, the team is considering a garden in the courtyard, which will grow herbs and vegetables to supply the school's food course.

Although Shah completed the necessary grant paperwork over the course of a couple of days, he downplays his efforts and defers credit to his president and school advisor.

Eco-Team president Vicky Bukta is interested in improving things at her school and the environment.

"Right now our scoreboard is very hard to use since the battery that runs it only lasts about 30 minutes, which is nowhere near the length of a full soccer or football game," she said. "Having the scoreboard run on its own would be great for future sport games we have on the field. At the same time we are helping the environment by having it run on its own with a solar panel," she said.

The Grade 11 student has been part of the eco-team for two years, joining mid-way through Grade 9.

Since the autumn of 2009, the Green Apple School Program has awarded hundreds of $1,000 grants to elementary and high schools in Ontario and Quebec.