The South Puget Sound Regional Envirothon is over! And the winner is…Stadium High School of Pierce County! This was the overall winning team, but each participating team had a chance to become the winner in their respective county. This means there are a total of four teams from our region that have earned the right to move on to the next stage of Envirothon! They are: Cedar High School of Mason County, Avanti High School of Thurston County, CASEE of Clark County, and of course Stadium Highschool. The State competition is scheduled for May 17 in Ellensburg and will be hosted at the Lazy F Camp and Retreat. Great job to all the competing teams, congratulations to each county’s winning team, and good luck to the competitors moving on to the State event!
A Natural Resource Competition for High School Students
Envirothon is a nationwide program that brings together high school students interested in natural resources and environmental science. The fun and competitive spirit of Envirothon motivates students to learn about real-world problems and solutions, and culminates in regional competitions, followed by the Washington State competition, and the national competition every summer with teams coming from across the U.S. and Canada.
Teams from Pierce County participate in the South Puget Sound Regional event in April at the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge against other teams of high school students from Thurston, Lewis, Kitsap, Mason, and Grays Harbor Counties. Teams rotate through a series of stations where they are tested on the topics of aquatics, forestry, soils/land use, and wildlife. In addition to these subjects, there is a featured issue every year, which is explored through a team presentation.
Students from the Tacoma School District’s Science and Math Institute work together to answer questions at the Forestry station during the South Puget Sound Regional Envirothon Competition, May 2015.
The Pierce Conservation District is committed to encouraging the participation of local teams, and may be able to provide assistance in the form of study materials, transportation, or other support that a team might need. Plus, if a Pierce County team wins regionals, the District will pay the team’s registration for the state competition!
For more information on what Envirothon is, how it works, how to form a team, or how to enter, contact Chris Towe at (253) 845-9770 ext 112 or ChrisT@Piercecd.org.
Members of the Tacoma School District’s Science and Math Institute’s Envirothon team study lichens, mosses, and algae with their advisor, Bethany Schmidt (second from left), in preparation of the regional competition.