What is the Envirothon?
The Envirothon is a high school competition designed to stimulate, reinforce and enhance interest in the environment and natural resources. Students are tested on their knowledge of soils, forestry, wildlife, aquatic ecology, and current environmental issues. In addition, the Envirothon encourages cooperative decision-making and team building. While each student on a team is challenged individually to contribute his or her personal best, the score that counts at the end of the competition is the team score. A team consists of five students, all from the same high school. An adult advisor (or advisors) must accompany the team, but is not permitted to assist the team during the competition.
High School students across the state compete on the local level at one of the five Area Envirothon Competitions. The top four teams from each Area Envirothon then go on to compete at the state competition held each year in June for the title of State Envirothon Champion. The winning team will then compete at the national competition, the NCF Envirothon, held annually in July in a different location in North America.
This year, the Tri-County Envirothon will be held on April 16th in Perry County. This is a practice competition for high school students with middle school students welcome to join. Registration for the Tri-County Envirothon will happen the day of the event, but please let us know your intentions beforehand so that we can plan accordingly.
This year’s Area 3 Envirothon will be held on April 23rd in Monroe County. We are looking for Licking County high school teams interested in participating! Up to four teams per school are welcome to join. Registration for the 2025 Area 3 Envirothon is due by March 12th, 2025.
Study materials for the Envirothon competition are available from Soil & Water upon request.
If you have any questions about the Area 3 or Tri-County Envirothon, registration for either event, or would like to be sent study materials, please contact Deirdre Wise at DeirdreWise@LickingSWCD.com or 740-670-5330.
2025 Envirothon Competition Dates
Tri-County Envirothon- April 16, 2025 at the Perry County Gun Club
Area 3 Envirothon- April 23, 2025 at Shadow Lake Campground in Monroe County
Ohio State Envirothon- June 2 - 4, 2025 Location TBD
National Envirothon- July 20 - July 26, 2025 at Mount Royal University, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Envirothon Competition Breakdown
High School (grades 9-12)
The Envirothon is an annual competition held each spring. High school teams consisting of five students compete for recognition and scholarships by demonstrating their knowledge of environmental science, conservation and natural resources management. Teams exercise their training and problem-solving skills in a competition centered on four categories: soils/land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, and wildlife, as well as a current environmental issue. There are four Envirothon competitions yearly for high school teams:
- Tri-County Envirothon - A friendly, non-sanctioned, practice competition with high school teams within Licking, Muskingum, and Perry Counties. Schools can bring as many teams as they wish and middle school teams are welcome to join. The Tri-County Envirothon is generally held in early April.
- Area 3 Envirothon - Four teams from each school may compete in the Area 3 competition. The top four teams qualify to represent Area 3 at the State Envirothon in June. The Area 3 competition is generally held in late April.
- State Envirothon - Five Area Envirothon competitions are conducted around Ohio each spring. The top four teams from each of the Area competitions progress to the Ohio Envirothon in June. The Ohio Envirothon is a 3-day event, incorporating a team presentation requirement that further challenges all participating students. The state level Ohio Envirothon is held in a different part of Ohio each year.
- North American Envirothon - The top-scoring team in the Ohio Envirothon is eligible to compete in the North American Envirothon, hosted by a different state or Canadian province every year.
Middle School Envirothon (grades 6-8)
The Middle School Envirothon prepares student for the High School level competition while learning more about the environment and Earth's natural resources. The Middle School Envirothon is held in conjunction with the Tri-County Envirothon with all High School and Middle School teams competing.
Study Resources for High School Students
Study resources for Envirothon can be found at https://www.envirothon.org/ or by contacting Licking County Soil and Water Conservation District.
