in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ju ne 24 ,2 02 1 | 20 Millions of people across Ontario have received their COVID-19 vaccine. Health Canada-approved vaccines are conveniently available at hospitals, doctors' offices, pharmacies and mass vaccination sites. And every dose brings us closer to what we've missed. Book your appointment today at ontario.ca/bookvaccine or call 1-888-999-6488 for help in 300 languages. Do your part. Get your shot. Paid for by the Government of Ontario Growing up by the ocean in Japan, Jessica Liu saw the importance of the fish- ing industry, but also wit- nessed the harm it can cause -- marine life tangled in discarded nets, unin- tended fish caught being discarded. So when the Grade 11 White Oaks Sec- ondary School student thought about entering the Blue Ocean Entrepreneur- ship Competition, she be- gan looking for ways to im- prove an industry that has remained largely un- changed for more than 50 years. What she came up with was KelpNet, an algae- based fishing net that is not only more environmentally friendly, but could also make the job of those catch- ing the fish easier. The 16-year-old just wanted to delve into a topic she was passionate about and after reading how many entries there were, she never considered win- ning the competition. But the judges chose Liu's presentation as the best from more than 2,000 entries from high-school students in 36 countries. "Kelpnet is the brilliant and winning pitch from Jes- sica Liu, that looks at how biodegradable netting could open up a blue ocean in the fishing industry," the judges said in announcing the winner. WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAG- ES OF KELPNET OVER TRA- DITIONAL FISHING NETS? Nylon nets take 600 years to decompose. An al- gae-based net takes nine months, it's non-toxic and marine animals can graze on it. There are different crops you can use like corn, but they have other uses, like food. Algae is the most suitable because it grows underwater, it doesn't inter- fere with food supply, it grows fast and it doesn't have another use. HOW DOES IT WORK? Bycatch (catching unin- tended species, or fish that are too young) is a problem the fishermen don't want ei- ther because they have to spend more time sorting, so I used that to my advantage. (Traditional) nets catch fish by the gills and the young fish are trapped. (Kelpnet) is hexagonal, so it prevents it from catching their gills so smaller fish can escape. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BENEFITS OF YOUR WIN? I've received so many comments and support from people with the same interests. Being able to con- nect with them have given me some new perspectives, and it's just great knowing how many people are pas- sionate about solving these problems. WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE? I'd like to study business and make something mean- ingful to me and continue to develop Kelpnet. NEWS Oakville's Jessica Liu idea of kelp-based fishing nets was the winning entry in the Blue Ocean Entrepreneurship Competition of over 2,000 entries from 36 countries. Graham Paine/Metroland OAKVILLE TEEN NETS TOP PRIZE IN INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION WHITE OAKS STUDENT SELECTED FROM THOUSANDS OF ENTRIES FROM 36 COUNTRIES HERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@metroland.com