Forming a Team

A team consists of a minimum of 3 students but no more than 5 students plus an alternate in grades 9-12. Interested students from a class may form teams or they may be members of a club. Team members must live in the same school district. Home schooler’s are welcome too. Every school is allowed to send two Envirothon teams to regional competitions. The two teams must attend the same regional competition.

Registering a Team

Registration materials are mailed to every high school in January. The registration fee is $50 per team. There are 6 regional competitions from which to choose and all competitions are held in late April or May. Teams can chose whichever regional competition they wish to attend. No more than 20 teams can participate at a regional competition. Therefore, teams who register early can be guaranteed their choice of regional competitions. A team would have to attend their second choice for the regional competitions if they are the 21st team to register for a particular region. Schools with two teams must attend the same regional competition.

Once registered, teams receive a Team Resource Pack from which to study. Approximately 4 weeks before the regional competitions, the Soil & Water Conservation District hosting the regional competition will send you a letter containing information about the competition and a map showing you how to get to the site. The top three winning teams at the regional competitions advance to the state finals. The top state team attends the Canon Envirothon National competition.

At the competitions, teams receive 6 t-shirts. Additional t-shirts may be ordered/purchased when a team registers. Usually, but not always, lunch is provided at the competitions. Lunch is provided at the state finals, the location of which changes yearly.

Please note there are NO REFUNDS if a school cannot make it once a team has registered, nor can the registration fee be rolled over to the following year, if the team has to cancel.

Testing Time/Stations

At the regional and state competitions, teams are tested for 30 minutes in an outdoor setting at each station (site): soils, aquatics, forestry, wildlife and a current issue. The current issue changes yearly and the 2008 issue is Recreational Impacts on Natural Resources. Occasionally, the testing time is extended to 40 minutes if there are more than 3 teams per station.

Types of Tests

Tests vary from station to station. Most tests include some multiple-choice questions, fill-in-the-blank, short explanations, and problems to solve. Judges try to make each test as site-specific as possible and hands-on activities/skills are included. Testing at the current issue station is conducted differently. One month before the regional competitions, teams receive by mail a problem to solve related to the current issue. Every team creates a poster(s) in advance which they bring to the regional competition. The poster should contain information about the problem they tried to solve. At this station, each team makes a 5-minute oral presentation in front of the judges explaining how they solved the problem. Judges may ask the team questions if time permits. Each team also takes a written exam at this station, the length of which is about 20 minutes. Some copies of former tests can be obtained from local Soil and Water Conservation Districts. When registered, all teams receive an extensive packet of reference materials for the Current Issue and oftentimes other references recommended by judges.

Reference Materials Used to Study For the Tests

Most Soil and Water Conservation Districts have copies of many of the reference materials that students are asked to study from for the competitions. A list of references is included with each study packet. Reference materials include pamphlets, books, brochures, magazine articles, government publications and videotapes. Most are free or inexpensive.

Regional Workshops

Some Soil & Water Conservation Districts may hold regional workshops or Mock Envirothons for teams during the winter. When you register for the Envirothon, you will be notified of these workshops. There may be a Forestry Workshop for teams held in early 2008. You will be notified of this workshop. If you feel that you or your team need additional help studying for the tests, contact your local Soil and Water Conservation District and ask if they know a resource specialist who may be of assistance.

Advisors/Alternates

Each team must have an adult advisor(s). Advisors may be teachers, parents, or members of the community. Advisors assist the teams in preparing for the competitions and make the necessary arrangements regarding registration, transportation, and when/ where/and how frequently team members will meet. Advisors help students determine the most desirable way to study for the competitions. At some competitions, advisors/alternates are allowed to accompany their team from station to station; however, they must not stand near the team or communicate with them in any way during the testing period. Advisors and alternates are not allowed to visit testing stations before their team(s) is tested at that station. Some advisors chose to bring work with them and only communicate with their teams during the 5-10 minutes between tests. At some regional competitions, the host district provides educational activities for the advisors. Each team is allowed to bring one alternate per team. Alternates may stay with their advisors during the testing. Additional individuals are discouraged from accompanying the teams to the competitions. They must ask the host district for permission to attend and may be charged a luncheon fee. At the State Finals, advisors are not allowed to accompany the teams through the competition. Educational programs for advisors are planned, however. Cell phones/pagers MUST BE OFF at both regional and state competitions.

Rules and Regulations

Non-adherence to the rules and regulations may lead to a team's disqualification. For additional information, contact your local Soil & Water Conservation District or tish carr, MACD Education Program Coordinator: (207) 495-2392, e-mail tish.carr@maineswcds.org.

Soil and Water Conservation District in Maine prohibit discrimination in the programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status.