SASKPOWER POSTER CONTEST RAISES AWARENESS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

The SaskPower Shand Greenhouse is sponsoring a poster contest to help Saskatchewan students understand the impact of climate change on our environment.

The Energy & Our Environment Poster Contest encourages students in grades five and six from across the province to create posters with an environmental theme to demonstrate the importance of energy conservation.

"This annual poster contest is just one example of SaskPower's proactive approach to addressing climate change," Minister Responsible for SaskPower Frank Quennell said. "The contest encourages our province's young people to think about alternative ways to use energy, and engages them in finding solutions to an important global issue."

Student posters can feature individual solutions, solutions for schools or even an entire community, such as:

· Planting a tree, which can help absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere;
· Increasing the use of renewable energy sources such as solar or wind power;
· Composting and recycling;
· Turning off lights or reducing the heat when possible; or
· Choosing to walk or ride a bike instead of driving a car.

A winning poster will be selected from each school that enters the contest, and the top four posters will then be selected from this smaller group of posters. Mountain bikes will be awarded to the students who create the top four posters. Each of the top four winners' schools will receive a $250 credit for the purchase of trees from a local nursery to be planted on school grounds. The winning schools will also receive $250 worth of climate change materials for the school library. Winning posters from last year can be viewed at www.saskpower.com.

Poster contest entries must be mailed to SaskPower no later than April 2nd, 2004. Winners will be announced on Earth Day – April 22nd – with prizes presented at the schools of the four winners before the end of the school year. Details on the contest have been mailed to elementary schools across the province, including First Nations schools, and are also available at www.saskpower.com.

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For More Information, Contact:

Larry Christie SaskPower Regina Phone: (306)566-3167 Email: lchristie@saskpower.com