BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Two teams of Lehigh Valley students have advanced to the state Envirothon competition, where they'll face off this month against schools from across the commonwealth.
Saucon Valley High School’s team had the highest cumulative score, to win Northampton County’s Envirothon on April 18 at Louise Moore County Park in Lower Nazareth Township, county spokeswoman Brittney Waylen said.
The team was made up of Claire Smith, Amanda Dettmar, Karoun Goudsouzian, Stepan Goudsouzian and Lincoln Alicea.
Bangor Area High School’s Team Maroon placed second, and Freedom Team Gold placed third.
A team from Emmaus High School won first place in Lehigh County’s competition, held last month at Covered Bridge Park in South Whitehall Township, said Laura Hopek, environmental education and outreach coordinator for the Lehigh County Conservation District.
Northwestern Lehigh placed second, with Parkland in third.
Essentially a scholastic scrimmage for environmental science, the annual Envirothon combines classroom learning and outdoor activities to engage students in the environment.
Each team, made up of five students and an adviser, is tested in a handful of topics, including: wildlife, forestry, soils and land use, aquatic ecology and a current environmental issue.
This year’s theme is “Renewable Energy for a Sustainable Future.”
Honoring a manager
The state competition is scheduled for May 22 at Camp Mt. Luther in Mifflinburg.
Fifteen high school teams participated in Lehigh County’s competition this year — one of the largest fields ever, Hopek said.
Students got a chance to get their hands dirty in a soil pit dug by township employees, creating hands-on lessons that connect students to local natural resources.
At the competition, the teams rotated through five stations taking written tests with some hands-on application.Brittney Waylen, Northampton County spokesperson
Northampton had 12 teams from seven schools.
“At the competition, the teams rotated through five stations taking written tests with some hands-on application,” Waylen said in an email.
The conservation district also honored Chryss Buchman, a previous district manager, during the event.
“Chryss passed away in 2016," Buchman said. "The award was given to the highest-scoring team at the Current Issue Station, Moravian Academy.”
Buchman “loved nature and was passionate about the conservation movement” according to her obituary, and worked with the district for 15 years and was an “integral part of the Envirothon.”
Last year, Bangor Area High School’s team, the winner of the Northampton County competition, placed ninth in the statewide Envirothon competition.
The other team to compete from the Lehigh Valley, with students from Emmaus High School, did not place in the Top 10.
