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Anyone attending the Washington State Envirothon on May 19-20 at Lake Samish would have no need to wonder if today’s youth will have the knowledge and skills to lead us in the future, especially in the realm of resource stewardship.
This annual high school competition challenges students on the topics of forestry, water quality, soil, and wildlife, requiring each team of five to problem solve together to produce the best answers. The top teams that attended this state-level competition were well-versed in natural resource management as demonstrated by their test scores, but also by their oral presentations on the 2009 current issue: biodiversity.
 Each team was given a set amount of time to prepare a presentation on the possible positive and negative impacts of a proposed tree thinning in the Samish watershed. Team after team of poised, knowledgeable, and well-spoken students faced the judges throughout the day, but in the end, three rose to the very top.
The 2009 Washington State Envirothon championship went to Stanwood High, with Mercer Slough Environmental Ed Center and Garfield-Palouse High coming in second and third.
The Stanwood High team will be traveling to North Carolina in August for the North American Envirothon sponsored by Canon.
Kudos to Skagit Conservation District’s Cindy Pierce for doing an outstanding job of organizing this year’s state competition.
Her many hours paid off as the two-day event unfolded seamlessly, culminating in an award ceremony where the champions received beautiful trophies and medallions.
Cindy was assisted by many volunteers and the Washington State Envirothon Committee representing six conservation districts and the State Conservation Commission.
To learn more about Envirothon, visit www.waenvirothon.org .
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