Cumberland students build energy efficient house

The media hype around the PISIM Project in Cumberland House has been stellar, but not all that happened has been positive, according to Northern Lights School Division school board member Alan Bishoff. Bishoff said the circumstances surrounding the project have brought him a lot of frustration.

“Part of my frustration with this (project) is that I was not involved with the building of it,” he said in an interview with Sage, even though he is an experienced contractor who came up with the initial idea.

Bishoff said he had the experience of building an energy efficient house and afterward, the idea occurred to him that students could help build and design one such house as a learning experience. He proposed the project idea to officials at the Charlebois Community High School and according to the school’s principal, Lily MacKay Carriere, the idea soon became a reality.

“He told us about how the College of Engineering would be interested in working with our students through their outreach program,” Carriere said and added that on the surface, the plan seemed like a good one.

“I wanted the students to be a part of the design process,” said Bishoff. “Which is something that has never happened. The houses they get are generally designed in Regina or Ottawa. This was an opportunity to get the students to understand the parameters of house construction.” Bishoff added that what should have been a helping hand with the project wound up being anything but that.

“I thought about the potential of this, and brought out a couple of people from the College of Engineering [from the University of Saskatchewan] to the board to talk about the things they could do,” said Bishoff. “I went back to the school administration and asked them if this was something they would be interested in.”

But the plan for the simple house changed.

“The house needs a special kind of flooring, because what it wound up being was some kind of solar home,” said Carriere, adding, “Nobody is living in it right now.”

The house took two years to build and is still not completed, but was purchased by the school board to use as a teacherage. Some other expenses included building a sawmill for the project in the community to make special cuts of timbers, Bishoff said, adding his own opinion that students had less hands-on experience than they should have received.

Even with all the rockiness of the project, Principal Carriere said the students might use those skills learned in the project later on in the future.

“They learned a lot about solar energy. It’s hard to say what it’ll grow into in the next ten to 15 years,” she said. “Maybe having been involved in this project, they might get involved in other engineering areas.”

Bishoff agrees that the project was a valuable learning experience for the students.

“They got exposure to some energy issues and some alternate construction methods,” he said. “They certainly got some exposure to some engineers from the University of Saskatchewan, and some things which I think will have a positive influence on their choices in future education.”