A group of students following Electrical, Construction and ICT Diploma courses at the MCAST Gozo Campus recently participated in a Life-Long Learning project meeting in Glasgow, Scotland.
The project entitled Sustainability in the New Europe - Ambassadors for Sustainability aims to bring together learning communities from different parts of Europe.
Over a two-year period 29 MCAST Gozo Campus students and staff members have participated in mobilities to the other partner organisations, namely Glasgow Kelvin College, Lüdenscheid's Berufskölleg für Technik des Markishen Kreises and Groningen's Alfa College.
Earlier this academic year, a similar project meeting was held at the MCAST Gozo Campus which hosted staff and students from the foreign partner institutions.
After analysing the situation in each respective country during the first year of the project, the students were involved in the selection of a building (belonging to an NGO) to identify ways to make it sustainable. The tasks included several site visits, the measurement of the roof space, identification of site orientation as well as the necessary calculations to establish the return of investment.
Nine participants were divided into three groups, focusing on rainwater harvesting, photovoltaic installations and solar water heating systems. The design proposals by the Gozitan students were presented at Glasgow Kelvin College and highlighted their sustainable design proposals.
The project partners are currently collating the work done by students from the different partner institutions that will be included in a multimedia DVD as the project's final product.
During their stay in Scotland, the group went on a day trip to Ben Cruahan, The Hollow Mountain, to visit one of the UK's most amazing engineering achievements, the Cruahan Power station, the first reversible pump-storage hydro power station that was ever built. The group was given a guided tour, one kilometre deep into the mountain, to view the turbine casings with a detailed explanation of how the station operates. Valves from the Cruahan Dam Reservoir, replenished by pumped water from Loch Awe during off-peak period and complemented by rainfall, can be opened to activate the turbines which can potentially deliver 440MW of power to the UK national grid within a timeframe ranging from 27 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on the state of the turbines. In fact the plant has an almost instantaneous response to power demand surges and serves as an emergency backup to the British national grid.
The students appreciated the relatively simple engineering concept, yet of massive proportions, which produce green, renewable energy with minimal environmental impact as the hydro-plant is completely encapsulated within the mountain. In fact, outside the mountain, the scenery of Ben Cruahan and Loch Awe are simply breath-taking, typical of the Scottish Highlands.
The programme also included a cultural visit to Edinburgh, with visits to the Royal Mile, Edinburgh Castle and the Scottish National Museum.
In Glasgow, students from each participating college had the opportunity to interact, share ideas and also spend some evenings together. The benefits of this will continue to be reaped in the years to come. The visit was also very rewarding to the staff, both from a professional as well from a personal perspective.
The group was accompanied by Godwin Grech, director Gozo Campus, Marilyn Cefai, Sammy Mifsud and Charlie Portelli.