Hydro Station Visit Whets Students’appetite

Media advisory for immediate use

Hydro Station Visit Whets Students’appetite

This week hundreds of primary, intermediate, and secondary school students from around New Zealand will participate in a virtual trek to the central South Island to visit some of Meridian’s Waitaki hydro-stations.

The LEARNZ-run Water Power field trip will allow students to stand next to spinning turbines as they learn how electrical energy is generated by falling water – without having to leave their classrooms. They will also visit the control centre at Meridian’s Twizel office to see how the hydro scheme is managed.

Claire Shaw, Meridian’s External Relations Manager, says Meridian is delighted that students are able to see Meridian’s Waitaki Hydro Scheme in action first hand.

“The LEARNZ field-trips are a great way of giving students a up-close and personal insight in to how renewable electricity is generated,” she says. “We are sure students will be fascinated by how water can be turned into electricity and the process that gets it into their home.

“Students will also get to experience New Zealand’s largest solid-earth dam which contains New Zealand’s largest man-made lake – Lake Benmore. They will learn how the dam’s construction was the biggest job of its kind undertaken in New Zealand and that it holds around 1.5 times more water than Wellington Harbour,” she added.

What Is LEARNZ?

LEARNZ is an online and interactive education programme for New Zealand schools. The web-based field trips allow students to visit places they would never usually get the chance to visit, without the expense and time of a physical field trip, by using online tools such as live audio conferencing, web diaries, and videos.

In 2008 Meridian entered into a three-year partnership with LEARNZ. Each year four trips featuring Meridian wind and water assets will be offered to students.

The Water Power virtual field trip follows on from the success of the first term Wind Power trip where students from 45 New Zealand schools were blown away when they got up close and personal with some of Meridian’s towering turbines at the Te Apiti wind farm in Manawatu as well as taking a trip to Meridian’s newest wind farm West Wind currently under construction in Wellington.

In term three LEARNZ registered schools will have the chance to visit Meridian’s southern-most hydro stationsand wind farm, White Hill, and in term four students will learn about Project Crimson, a Meridian sponsored environmental trust which aims to renew and protect the New Zealand’s native red flowering trees - the pohutukawa and rata.
To find out more about Meridian’s hydro and wind generation visit www.meridian.co.nz . For more information on LEARNZ field trips visit www.learnz.org.nz .

ENDS

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