At the Georgia Envirothon, teams are evaluated on their performance at each of the following training/testing stations: Soils/Land Use, Aquatic Ecology, Forestry, Wildlife, and, Current Environmental Issue.

The resource materials for each testing station are developed by state and federal agency personnel with an expertise in forestry, wildlife, soils, water, and the current environmental issue. These materials reflect an expansion of generalized environmental knowledge into subject specific, hands-on, competitive activities that draw students deeply into environmental education. Federal and state personnel help provide in-the-field instruction to both teacher-sponsors and Envirothon teams.

At the regional competition, each team is subject to a 45 minute written test conducted by cooperating agencies and/or independent environmental professional at each station. The tests are comprehensive in nature, are ecosystem based, and reflect the scientific methodology utilized in each field. Teams are expected to be familiar with common field instrumentation.

Each year, the Georgia Envirothon features a different current environmental issue for station testing. The actual issue is chosen by the Canon Envirothon and represents a well-researched and documented current environmental issue.

Examples of current environmental issues chosen for Canon Envirothon events include:

• Urban Non-Point Source Pollution
• Introduced Species and Their Effect on Biodiversity
• Agricultural Land Conservation and Preservation
• Natural Resource Management in the Urban Environment

To find out the current environmental issue for this year's competition, visit the Current Competition section of the website, and for the current environmental issue for upcoming competitions, visit the Future Competition section.

Being able to orally communicate natural resource material is crucial in addressing environmental problems/issues, particularly in situations where collaborative efforts are required to develop practical solutions and effect change. The Georgia Envirothon strives to challenge and promote the development of oral communication skills in each student participant, which is why the oral presentation is the test of the current environmental issue at the state competition.

On the first day of the state competition, prior to the oral presentations, resource professionals present students with a scenario and supporting materials relevant to the topic/problem on which they will be required to present. Additionally, each team will receive a box of supplies (markers, note cards, poster board, etc.) that they can use to develop visual aids to assist with their presentation. After receiving the presentation problem, each team will have three hours to prepare an effective presentation, using only the resources provided by the Georgia Envirothon. No other materials, including study materials, are permitted. At the end of the allotted preparation period, all materials are collected and secured until fifteen minutes prior to each team's presentation.

Oral presentations are conducted in front of a panel of 3 judges and are videotaped. Each team has 15 minutes to deliver their presentation to the panel of judges followed by a five-minute question and answer period. All teams will present on Friday. There are two presentation judging rooms but, each room will evaluate only one-half of the teams live on Friday. In order to balance the evaluations and scoring, each team of judges will evaluate the teams that they did not see live on Friday, by videotape on Saturday morning. Each team receives a score that represents the average of the 6 individual judge's score and is based on the overall quality of their presentation, their preparation and presentation of a plan, and their application of relevant data to the resource issue/problem (see Judges' Scoring). All team members must participate orally in the presentation.

One of the best ways to prepare for a competition is to increase your understanding of the judging criteria. The score sheet used at the Georgia Envirothon is used to evaluate each team's performance in the Current Environmental presentation. The score sheet is to be used as a guide in preparing teams for the oral presentation at the state competition.

Download judges scoring sheet

Below are the learning objectives for the 4 core units, Forestry, Soils, Water, and Wildlife. The learning objectives for the Current Environmental unit is included in the unit’s study materials.

Forestry

Students will learn:

• to identify forest types and their functions;
• to identify stages of natural succession;
• to identify common trees found in Georgia’s ecosystems;
• to identify major pests of southern forests and how integrated pest management is used;
• the economic and eco-nomic value of forests;
• how people affect the forests; and
• forest management methods to sustain the health of forest ecosystems.

Soils

Students will learn:

• to identify soil horizons (layers) in an exposed profile (cross-section);
• to identify soil horizons by texture and color;
• to determine slope; to use a soil survey;
• this includes locating specific places on a soil map, locating soils information in the manuscript,
• interpreting the data that is contained in the tables, and comparing the productivity and suitability of
• different soils for various land uses;
• the five soil forming factors;
• how pollutants are broken down in soils;
• conservation practices commonly used to sustain soil resources.

Wildlife

Students will learn:

• to identify common fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and plants;
• facts about common wildlife species (habitat, food, reproduction, etc.);
• wildlife management techniques;
• why wildlife becomes threatened/endangered and how they are managed;
• non-game wildlife and how they are managed;
• how humans impact wildlife and methods to reduce negative impacts;
• mountain streams, freshwater wetlands, and lake ecosystems in Georgia; and
• the impacts of exotic species on Georgia’s native wildlife.

Water

Students will learn:

• how water cycles through ecosystems;
• to determine the boundaries of a watershed;
• how the watershed functions as a system;
• how human activities and natural communities impact a watershed;
• to identify aquatic macro invertebrates and what their presence means;
• to assess water quality using visual surveys and chemical parameters;
• to identify factors which most effect or reflect watershed health;
• watershed protection techniques;
• watershed management technology tools; and
• federal, state, and local laws that manage water supply and protect water quality.

North:
Norma Rainwater
nrainwater@gfc.state.ga.us

West:
Cindy Haygood
Cindy.Haygood@ga.usda.gov

East:
Emily Saunders
esaunders@warnell.uga.edu

Southeast:
Kim Thompson
kimberly.thompson@ga.usda.gov

Forestry:
Gregg Jameson
gjameson@gfc.state.ga.us

Soils:
Jim Lathem
jim.lathem@ga.usda.gov

Water:
Lee Carmon
lcarmon@negrc.org

Wildlife:
Ken Riddleberger
ken_riddleberger@dnr.state.ga.us

Protection of Groundwater through Urban, Agricultural, and Environmental Planning:
Carrie Fowler
cfowler@gaswcc.org