Waterloo student’s solution to speed plastic bag breakdown takes top award at CWSF 2008

May 16, 2008

An innovative project demonstrating dramatically accelerated biodegradation of plastic bags won the EnCana Best in Fair and the EnCana Platinum Award for Best Senior project at the 47th Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF). Daniel Burd, a 16 year-old grade 11 student from Waterloo Collegiate Institute in Waterloo, Ontario, won the prestigious award which comes with a $10,000 cash prize, one part of the nearly $60,000 in awards and scholarships won by the young scientist. Burd's project demonstrated that a particular combination of soil bacteria was able to break down a significant percentage of polyethylene in just a few weeks. Plastic bags can take hundreds of years to break down under normal landfill conditions.

The fair, a national competition bringing together Canada’s most promising scientific talent, wrapped up Saturday in Ottawa, Ontario. EnCana Corporation is a major supporter of science fairs in Canada.

Although some CWSF finalists conduct their research in university facilities or under the guidance of a mentor, all three of this year's top awards were presented to projects done at home.

Nirusan Jayaranjan of Winnipeg, Manitoba took the EnCana Platinum Award for Best Intermediate project. The grade 9 student at Collège Sturgeon Heights Collegiate combined Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and wireless voice command technologies to create a system that allows blind and visually-impaired people to navigate buildings independently.

Rounding out the top awards was Brent Murphy, also of Winnipeg, Manitoba, who won the EnCana Platinum Award for Best Junior project. Brent, a thirteen year old grade 8 student at Arthur A. Leach School, studied the use of garlic powder, made from home-grown garlic, as a treatment to protect wheat, pea and soybean seeds and seedlings from factors that reduce the plants' vigour.

Click the link to download complete award results as a PDF document:
CWSF 2008 (English) / ESPC 2008 (français)

Browse all CWSF projects from 2005-2008, including photos, awards and abstracts, in the Virtual CWSF.

The Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF) is a national competition bringing together Canada’s most promising scientific talent. Featuring science ranging from developing organic dye-based solar cells to a kit designed to convert a walker to an inexpensive electric wheelchair, this year’s fair boasted 385 projects and 478 young scientists. Youth in grades 7 to 12 (and Cégep in Québec) from every province and territory, ranging in age from 12 to 21 compete for nearly $1 million in prize money, scholarships and programs. Past competitors at the CWSF have included astronaut, doctor, scientist and photographer Roberta Bondar, award-winning science columnist Peter Calamai, and Jaymie Matthews, principal investigator of the MOST microsatellite.

About Youth Science Foundation Canada
Since 1962, Youth Science Foundation Canada (YSF) has played a vital role in nurturing the scientific impulse amongst our youth – encouraging them to develop scientific and technological knowledge and skills. Every year, half a million young Canadians – as many as play hockey – participate in project-based science. Fired by the tireless energy of over 8,000 volunteers: educators, scientists and parents across a network of over 100 local organizations, YSF works to capture their imaginations and broaden their access to science. Our goal is to ensure all young Canadians have the chance to peer through the lens of a microscope and be mesmerized by what they see.

About EnCana Corporation
With an enterprise value of approximately US$55 billion, EnCana is a leading North American unconventional natural gas and integrated oilsands company. By partnering with employees, community organizations and other businesses, EnCana contributes to the strength and sustainability of the communities where it operates. EnCana common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ECA. For more information, go to www.encana.com.