HARRISBURG, Pa. — Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger congratulated members of Delaware County’s Penncrest High School Envirothon Team for taking first place in the national Canon Envirothon held at the University of North Carolina-Asheville.
“This is the 11th year a team from Pennsylvania has won this prestigious national environmental education competition,” Hanger said. “This impressive record reflects the importance Pennsylvania places on providing students with a solid background in our environment and ecology standards.”
More than 260 teenagers from 45 U.S. states and seven Canadian provinces were tested on their knowledge of soils and land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife and a current environmental issue.
Issue
This year’s issue for the competition was “Biodiversity in a Changing World.”
Students analyzed the long-term and short-term impact of natural environmental occurrences and human activities on genes, species and ecosystems relative to how each may influence or directly impact their future.
The Penncrest team advanced to the national competition after winning Pennsylvania’s Envirothon competition held in May at Bald Eagle State Park, Centre County.
High school students from 65 counties participated in this year’s state competition. This is the third national first place finish for Penncrest High School.
Team members
Members of the team include: Mark Samilenko (team sponsor), Amanda Meltz (team sponsor), Katie Davis, Katie Ferguson, Elizabeth Freeburg, Alex Senko and Jennifer Walker.
A team from Pennsylvania has won the North American event in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2009.
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