For immediate release
Sunset Students Represent Oregon in Prestigious Water Science Competition
Hillsboro, OR — June 4, 2009 —
Ashutosh Patra and Siheng You, seniors at Sunset High School in Beaverton, have been named the state winners of the 2009 Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP) competition — the most prestigious youth award for a water-related science project. Selected for his co-authored project on cost-effective electricity generation and water cleansing, Siheng will represent the duo and Oregon at the national competition, June 25-27, 2009, in Anchorage, Alaska. Here he will compete against other young researchers from across the country for the opportunity to represent the United States at the international competition, which will take place in Stockholm, Sweden, this August.
“We take water for granted and maybe one day we might be able to fill the scarcity,” commented Siheng on the value of the students’ projects and competition.
This is a second SJWP state win for Ashutosh who represented Oregon in 2008 and was one of three finalists in the national competition in Florida. For Ashutosh this year’s win is “a big honor.” He added, “Our work is important because water is the new liquid gold.”
The purpose of the SJWP program is to increase students' interest in water-related issues and to raise awareness about global water challenges. The competition is open to projects aimed at enhancing the quality of life through improvement of water quality, water resource management, water protection, and water and wastewater treatment.
In the United States, the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and its Member Associations organize the state and national SJWP competitions with support from ITT Corporation, The Coca-Cola Company, and Delta Air Lines. WEF is a not-for-profit technical and educational services organization dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of the global water environment. The Pacific Northwest Clean Water Association (PNCWA), the organizer of the Oregon competition, is one of WEF’s 81 Member Associations.
Clean Water Services, a member of PNCWA, is the water resources management utility for more than 500,000 people in urban Washington County and small portions of Multnomah County, Clackamas County, Lake Oswego, and Portland. Clean Water Services operates four wastewater treatment facilities, constructs and maintains flood management and water quality projects, and manages flow in the Tualatin River to improve water quality and protect fish habitat. Although Clean Water Services maintains a close working relationship with Washington County government, it is a separately managed and financed public utility.
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