April 29th, 2016 by WCBC Radio
Allegany County Public Schools hosted the 27th Annual Envirothon Competition on Thursday, April 28, 2016, at Rocky Gap State Park. Teams from Allegany, Fort Hill and Mountain Ridge High Schools participated in this year’s event. Allegany County’s competition includes five stations – forestry, wildlife, aquatics, soils, and a current environmental issue.
A moment of silence was observed prior to the start of this year’s awards presentation in memory of Gene Paul, one of the original Envirothon founders in Allegany County. Mr. Paul passed away in November.
Allegany High School’s team, “Hammond Cheese”, placed first in the event with 409 points and will now have the opportunity to represent Allegany County at the 2016 Maryland Envirothon to be held at Mount Saint Mary’s University June 22-23, 2016. Members of team “Hammond Cheese” included Cooper Hostetler, Carter Willetts, Thorne Lindsey, Zach Ellsworth and John frank. Al Hammond is Allegany’s Envirothon advisor.
Another team from Allegany, “Salty Dogs”, placed 2nd in the competition with 370 points, and Mountain Ridge’s team “Krusty Krushers” placed 3rd with 369 points. Members of team “Salty Dogs” included Clay Hoover, Evan Hostetler, Melissa Magrath, Umailla Fatima, and Andrew Martin. Members of team “Krusty Krushers” included Gage Jacobs, Tiffanie Hare, Courtney Spiker, Erica Robertson, and Megan Whiteman. Rebecca Byzon is Mountain Ridge’s Envirothon advisor. Mountain Ridge’s team “Club Fun Guy” received Honorable Mention for earning 358 points at the competition.
Awards were presented not only to the top three teams but also for the highest score in each of the categories in which students competed. Mountain Ridge’s “Krusty Krushers” won the Aquatics category with 96 points; and Allegany’s “Hammond Cheese” won Forestry with 72.5 points, Soils with 83 points, and Wildlife with 92 points. Mountain Ridge’s “Can’t Stump Us” won the current environmental issue, Invasive Species, with 79 points. The top three winning teams also received prints to display in their schools courtesy of Lee Heavner of Heavner Farms.
The Envirothon is a problem-solving natural resource competition for high school students. Three Pennsylvania soil and water conservation districts first implemented it in 1979, and the first national contest was held in 1988. The objectives of the event are to allow participants to gain a deeper knowledge of the effect individual actions have on environmental problems; the interactions and interdependencies of the environment; current environmental issues; the agencies available to assist them in resource-protection matters; and the need to become environmentally aware and action-oriented adults.
Pepsi, Martin’s, Coca-Cola, Stroehmann, Verso Corporation, AES Warrior Run, LaVale Lions Club, National Jet Company, Emerick’s Meat and Packing Company, and the Allegany County Teachers’ Federal Credit Union provided sponsorship for this year’s county event.
The school system partners with the following agencies to host the Envirothon: Maryland Park Service, Allegany County Forestry Board, Maryland Cooperative Extension, Allegany County Soil Conservation District, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Maryland Forest Conservancy District Board.
