Chester County Envirothon Wrap-Up
(Plus: Are You Smarter than an Envirothoner?)
June 2024
On April 24th and 25th, students from across the county competed to put months of studying to the test at the 2024 Chester County Envirothon. A total of 355 students participated over the course of the two-day Envirothon, which was held at a very windy Hibernia County Park. The students' unwavering environmental enthusiasm (and many layers of clothing) helped them to push through these conditions and still have a successful Envirothon!
Each year the Envirothon features a different environmental issue as an area of focus. This year's Current Issue for the event was "Renewable Energy for a Sustainable Future," which students studied up on along with Aquatics, Forestry, Wildlife, Soils, and Outdoor Safety. The first day of the event saw lots of excitement as third, fourth, and fifth graders from 14 elementary schools flooded out from buses, circled up, rallied for their teams, and competed.
Want to see how you would do at the Envirothon? Here are a few questions from the wildlife category for you to try out! (answers at btoom of page)
1. Analysis of Eastern Coyote DNA suggests that coyote/wolf hybridization has occurred.
- True
- Fasle
2. Red Tailed Hawks are classified as Falcons.
- True
- Fasle
3. Ruffed Grouse prefer habitat.
- mature forest
- brushy
- wetland
- meadow
4. The "main" entrance of a Woodchuck den can be identified from a "back" entrance by .
- the size of the hole
- the presence of a dirt mound
- the location near a tree
- the south facing direction
On day two, the middle and high schoolers competed with 17 teams from 10 schools and 16 teams from 9 schools, respectively. Everyone began by circling up to generate hype. Then, the organizers divided everyone up and sent the teams to their first station where they took a timed test. Once time was up, the students rotated to the next station, which went on until everyone had been to each station. Finally, the students could rest their minds as organizers tallied up the points and announced the winners!
At the end of the day, all the teams had displayed their vast environmental knowledge, and it was time for the organizers and volunteers to tally up the points. For the high school competition, Avon Grove's Team A came out on top! On May 22, they went on to compete in the State Envirothon competition at Camp Mount Luther in Mifflinburg and earned 15th place — the highest Chester County has placed in years! Avon Grove's Team A was followed by Owen J Roberts' Team A in second place, and Conestoga's Team A in third place. The middle schoolers' rankings were West Fallowfield Christian's Team A in first, Penn's Grove's Team A in second, and Great Valley's Team B in third.
Despite the competitive nature of the Envirothon, most participants are just happy to be there. "We have a lot of fun," says Chester County Envirothon organizer Gaye Lynn Criswell, who described the Envirothon as a fun and exciting event for everyone involved.
Congratulations to each team for impressive efforts, and to Avon Grove's Team A for representing Chester County at the State competition!
- 1. A – True
- 2. B – False
- 3. B – brushy
- 4. B – the presence of a dirt mound