Carmichaels Area High School, Greene County Wins 35th PA State Envirothon

The first place winners of the 35th Pennsylvania Envirothon held this week is the team from Carmichaels Area High School in Greene County with a score of 546 points out of a possible 600.  

The Greene County team earned the honor to represent Pennsylvania at the NCF-Envirothon international competition to be held at Idaho State University July 22-28.

Pennsylvania teams have won the now international Envirothon competition in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2009 and 2017.  (No pressure here.)

Completing the top 10 winners are--

-- Second Place: Palmyra High School, Lebanon County, with a score of 523.67;

-- Third Place: Penncrest High School, Delaware County, with a score of 512.67;

-- Fourth Place: Bangor Area High School, Northampton County, with a score of 506;

-- Fifth Place: MMI Preparatory School, Luzerne County, with a score of 500.33;

-- Sixth Place: York Home School Association, York County, with a score of 489.67;

-- Seventh Place: Bradford Area High School, McKean County, with a score of 482;

-- Eighth Place: Blue Mountain High School, Schuylkill County, with a score of 479.67;

-- Ninth Place: Conneaut Area High School, Crawford County, with a score of 473; and

-- Tenth Place: West Perry High School, Perry County, with a score of 462.

The Pennsylvania Envirothon awarded scholarships to the first through fifth place teams.  The scholarships were sponsored by Pennsylvania’s County Conservation Districts and Shell Oil.  Each of the top ten teams received a plaque and other prizes.

This year’s Pennsylvania Envirothon state competition was held at the Susquehanna University and Camp Mount Luther on May 22 and 23.  High school students from 65 Pennsylvania counties participated in this year’s event.

At the Envirothon, five-member teams participate in a series of field station tests that focus on five topic areas – soils and land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, and environmental issues.  

The 2018 current environmental issues focused on The Benefits of Grassland and Pastureland Management.  

The teams also prepare and deliver oral presentations to panels of judges who evaluate each team on its problem-solving capabilities, oral presentation skills and recommendations to help solve the specific environmental challenge, which relates to the current environmental issue.

The high station winners, with scores, include:

-- Soils/Land Use: Palmyra High School, Lebanon County, with a score of 96;

-- Aquatic Ecology: Penncrest High School, Delaware County, with a score of 93;

-- Forestry: Carmichaels Area High School, Greene County, with a score of 97;

-- Wildlife: Carmichaels Area High School, Greene County, with a score of 85;

-- Current Issue: Conneaut Area High School, Crawford County, with a score of 90;

-- Oral Presentation Component: Carmichaels Area High School, Greene County, with a score of 100.

Teams participating represent the best and the brightest of the thousands of high school teens who have competed in county Envirothon competitions sponsored by conservation districts from across the state and the Philadelphia Parks & Recreation.  

At the state level, the Envirothon is sponsored by Pennsylvania’s sixty-six county conservation districts, the State Conservation Commission, and the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts.  The program is managed by a board of directors representing those sponsors.

Technical expertise is provided by the following partners:  Department of Agriculture, Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Game Commission, Fish and Boat Commission, and U.S.D.A. Natural Resources Conservation Service.  

Sponsors and partners of the 2018 Envirothon are Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Education, Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance (KEEA), Shell Oil Company, PPL, The Hershey Company, EQT Foundation, Weis Markets, Chief Oil & Gas LLC, UGI Utilities, Smithfield, and National Conservation Foundation Envirothon.  

More than 47 states, eight Canadian provinces, one Canadian territory, and two Chinese provinces have initiated Envirothon contests based on the program that was originally developed by Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.

For more information, visit the Pennsylvania Envirothon website, call 814-310-3271 or contact Lorelle Steach by sending email to: lsteach@envirothonpa.org.  You can also contact your county conservation district.