{"id":26377,"date":"2022-04-04T13:58:19","date_gmt":"2022-04-04T17:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/?p=26377"},"modified":"2022-04-04T13:58:19","modified_gmt":"2022-04-04T17:58:19","slug":"maryland-teens-get-ready-for-first-round-of-environmental-education-competitions-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/press-release\/2022\/04\/04\/maryland-teens-get-ready-for-first-round-of-environmental-education-competitions-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Maryland Teens Get Ready for First Round of Environmental Education Competitions"},"content":{"rendered":"

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<\/b>ANNAPOLIS, MD <\/b>\u2013 Maryland\u2019s brightest high school science students are heading for the hills, streams and woodlands of Maryland\u2019s countryside to compete in the first round of qualifying heats leading up to the <\/span>2022 National Conservation Foundation (NCF) Envirothon<\/span><\/a>, North America\u2019s largest high school environmental education competition.<\/span><\/p>\n

Students participating in the <\/span>Maryland Envirothon<\/span><\/a> have been studying the state\u2019s natural resources since the beginning of the school year. As part of their extracurricular training, teenagers identify and categorize living resources, perform soil surveys, estimate wood yield from trees, and solve other complex natural resource issues. Students are taught by soil scientists, wildlife specialists, foresters, and environmental engineers from local, state, and federal agencies, as well as private environmental organizations. The competition includes a special environmental issue that changes from year to year. This year\u2019s environmental issue is <\/span>Waste to Resources<\/i><\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Teams compete by applying their knowledge and problem-solving skills in these natural resource areas. The county team with the highest cumulative total wins the local or regional competition and advances to the state competition, Maryland Envirothon, scheduled for <\/span>June 22 at the Central Maryland Research and Education Center in Ellicott City. <\/span>The winner of the Maryland Envirothon will go on to represent the state later this summer at the national competition in Oxford, Ohio, where more than 250 teenagers from the United States and Canada will compete for scholarships and prizes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Envirothon does a first-rate job of preparing teens for a career in agriculture and natural resources planning,\u201d said Secretary Joe Bartenfelder. \u201cIt gets teens out of the classroom and into the countryside to learn from the experts about agriculture, natural resources and the importance of environmental stewardship.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Envirothon is sponsored by Maryland\u2019s Soil Conservation Districts and the State Soil Conservation Committee and supported by other state and federal programs. Dates and contact information for upcoming county Envirothon competitions are listed below:<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n