Ecological Literacy project result

1. Earth Needs Us As Much As We Need It!
(essay by Teodor–Samuel Ghirbomean, "Constantin Noica" Theoretical High
School Sibiu, Romania, coordinated by his teacher Petrina Dobrotă)
Our home planet, Earth, is the third planet from the sun and the only known
planet containing life, being inhabited by us, human beings, by instinct driven
animals and by pure life-filled trees and plants alike. In order to protect ourselves
and the living beings near us it’s utmost important to create a safer Earth using
simple methods of protecting the environment or cutting off major things that drain
the life drastically from our beloved planet. It is time to pull aside all things that
give us nothing good and focus on using less resources and more natural means of
energy, for our own good!
Firstly, by using natural methods in providing energy into our homes, we
become more aware of how much Earth needs us as much as we need it. Professor
James Blyth is one great example of a great man with a great game changing idea.
In July, the year 1887, James Blyth from the Anderson’s College in Glasgow,
Scotland built the first recorded windmill. It sounds kind of odd, doesn’t it? But
this was no ordinary windmill, for this one was used for the production of electric
power. The cloth-sailed wind turbine was placed in his very own garden and was
used for charging accumulators to power the lighting in his home, his cottage being
the first recorded house to be powered by natural means, even though the townsfolk
regarded his smart choice as “the work of the devil”. These days, his scientific
discovery is exploited in different models of wind turbines, most of them ranging
from 600 Kw to 5 Kw of rated power, a great step for mankind.
But when there’s little wind outside we should rely on a different source of
renewable energy. The awesome power of the sun is the answer in these dire times
and by using the solar power, which is a conversion of energy from sunlight into
electricity, we power our homes for a brighter, flawless future. The wind turbines,
photovoltaic solar arrays and concentrated solar power units are two of the most
used methods in providing electrical power using renewable energy. The history of
solar technology dates back in early 1860s, but it was only in the year 1884 when
Charles Fritts installed the first rooftop photovoltaic solar array on a New York
City roof. This was a great step ahead, although the installed solar system wasn’t
very powerful. However, using Fritts’ technology, these days solar panels can reach
up to a capacity of 800 MW, the largest being in Qinghai, China by the name of

2. Longyangxia Dam Solar Park with a capacity of 850 MW, a truly magnificent
number. And, like that, we covered the renewable energy gathered from the air. But
what about the water? How can we possibly use this material in creating vital
electrical energy? Well, there is a way. The hydropower was used since ancient
times and it still is now an important method in gathering energy. A source of
energy that will never be outdated. As I stated in a previous sentence, since ancient
times, hydropower from different kinds of windmills has been used as a renewable
energy source for irrigation and the operation of diverse mechanical devices. The
first water wheels and mills were built in India in what seems like 4th
century BC.
Later, in the ancient Roman Empire we find that water powered mills produced
daily essential needs like flour or being used for sawing timber and stone. Even in
the Middle Ages, the mechanical engineer Al-Jazari wrote about 50 water powered
devices in his well-known book called “The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious
Mechanical Devices”.
In the year 1753, the book called “Architecture Hydraulique” was published
by the French engineer Bernard Forest de Bélidor describing the science behind
water powered devices, but it was only in the 1830s that water became an important
renewable resource of energy. These days, humans built dams and alll types of
water powered devices that became an important method of providing electricity in
our homes. As we covered air and waters, we should just take a look beneath us.
Our Earth provides us with another type of renewable energy, this time, stored
inside underground. Geothermal energy becomes an important method of energy
gathering since heat stored in the Earth is a great type of renewable energy. Starting
from the Paleolithic times, even in the first century AD, geothermal energy became
more and more used throughout the years. In the year 1892, America’s first district
heating system in Boise, Idaho was powered by geothermal energy. From it,
different kinds of systems were exploited, and in the 20th
century it became a large
provider, the United States having 29% of the global geothermal production.
Now we come across the last renewable energy, the bioenergy. Bioenergy is
available from materials derived from biological sources such as wood, wood
waste, straw, manure, sugarcane and many more products from a variety of
agricultural processes. The combustion of wood for heat is one of the simpler uses
of bioenergy, but using it for providing electricity is commonly made in Brazil by
using sugarcane waste. The current production in this country is 600 MW of self-
use and 100 MW for sale. By extracting the juice from the sugarcane, we come
across the material named bagasse. The Earth we stand upon wasn’t given to us for
no reason. We are destined to protect it at all cost. It’s a burden worth carrying, and
our future will be much brighter if we respect the environment. Earth needs us as
much as we need it.
Erasmus project coordinator:
Gabriela Mirela Jugar