High School Students Tackle Green Easy Woodworking Project

There is a lot of talk about going green and reducing your carbon footprint these days. It is refreshing to read in an article from Ashland Daily Tidings that some young people are taking that goal seriously and working toward it. Three high school students from Ashland, Oregon, are taking on a green easy woodworking project by building a wind turbine.

Ashland High School students David Erhun, Noah Slater and Jordan Alexander are currently working on the project. The idea originated with 16 year-old junior Erhun, who recruited seniors Slater and Alexander to help him.

Erhun got the idea when he was in London this summer, attending the Camp for Climate Action. They discussed grassroots energy projects there and the wind turbine discussion peaked Erhun's interest. He attended a workshop to teach people to build wind turbines and he decided to pursue the subject further when he got home.

Because he did not have the knowledge to take the project on without research, he turned to a book by Hugh Piggott, a leader in the field of small wind turbine technology. A Wind Turbine Recipe Book, published in January of this year, proved to be Erhun's guide. After reading it, he recruited Slater and Alexander and they began to work on a small wind turbine using Piggott's book as their guide.

The wind turbine that they are building is about a quarter the size of a normal small wind turbine and will be made of wood and metal. The teenagers realize that it may not produce a huge amount of energy, but see it as a good starting project and will be proud of the accomplishment. The wood blades of the windmill are about one meter long each and were cut and sanded using simple woodworking tools. Their next steps are to install an alternator and a metal base. The metal work in the project is also simple but will require some welding that they will need help with.

The young men plan to have the project completed between November and January. They will then use it as a demonstration of how three high school students can complete an easy woodworking project that benefits the environment.

I think we could all take inspiration from these three young men from Oregon and work on our own environmentally friendly woodworking projects.

Recommended Reading:

• www.windaction.org | Another wind turbine before board - The Otter Tail County Board is scheduled hear from a property owner regarding a proposed wind farm near Parkers Prairie. ...The discussion on the wind farm, proposed by Prairie Wind Energy LLC, is scheduled to take place at 9:45 am The ...
• Use The Tax System To Reduce Your Small Wind Turbine Cost - Just a few months back, before President Bush left office, he signed the revised Emergency Economic.
• www.windaction.org | School mulls wind power - The Indian River Central School District is looking into putting a wind turbine on one of its campuses to decrease the district's energy costs and carbon footprint. ..."We are proposing a study to assess the wind we have," district ...

	First Projects for Woodcarvers: A Pictorial Introduction to Woodcarving (Schiffer Book for Woodcarvers) List Price: $12.99 Sale Price: $11.99
	Description First Projects for Woodcarvers is a pictorial starting place for the adventure of woodcarving. It introduces the new carver to safety considerations, the fundamentals of sharpening and carving. Three pro-jects are included, designed with the new carver in mind: a cowboy boot, a dog called Gandolf, and a 3-piece stylized nativity...

	First Christmas Projects: For Woodcarvers (Schiffer Book for Woodcarvers) List Price: $14.95 Sale Price: $8.50
	Description Welcome to carving. This isnt a complete work or an everything-you-wanted-to-know book, but rather a starting place to begin the adventure of sculpting wood. The book introduces the new carver to safety considerations, the fundamentals of sharpening, carving knives, palm carving tools, and helpful aids for carving...

	Workbench Projects: Green-Winged Teal Pair List Price: $24.95 Sale Price: $12.99
	Description Instructions for carving and painting both the hen and the drake Life-size patterns included for both birds Convenient lay-flat spiral binding The latest entry in the Workbench Projects series offers step-by-step instructions and photographs for carving and painting a green-winged teal hen and drake...

	GREENE AND GREEN: DESIGN ELEMENTS FOR THE WORKSHOP - By Darrell Peart List Price: $25.99 Sale Price: $23.99
	Description Greene & Greene furniture is famous for its refined details and striking design. Yet craftsmen have had difficulty replicating these pieces due to their rarity. This book is the solution furniture makers have been looking for...

	TURNING GREEN WOOD by Michael O'Donnell (Sterling) List Price: $19.99 Sale Price: $18.99
	Description Michael O'Donnell - Guild of Master Craftsman covers the process of turning fresh lumber straight from the log without previous processingteaches the reader how to work with the wood & make use of its many characteristics & features...