(The West Virginia Conservation Agency continued its involvement with the West Virginia Envirothon this year, with several employees donating their time and efforts both prior to and during the event at Cedar Lakes Conference Center in Jackson County. We also sponsored the third-place team. [See the photo below.] Below is a news release sent out April 20 announcing the winners and results of the 2024 WV Envirothon.)
  
RIPLEY, W.Va. – The Moorefield Gold team from Moorefield High School won first place in a very competitive 2024 West Virginia Envirothon Friday at Cedar Lakes Conference Center in Jackson County.

The team members on Moorefield, who will share a $5,000 scholarship, are Anna Bowen, Emma Cremann, Amber Williams, Grant Sherman and James Williams. Moorefield Gold will move on to participate in this summer’s international NCF-Envirothon competition at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y., from July 28 to August 3.

High school students from across the state joined at Cedar Lakes Thursday and Friday for the best attended Envirothon event in many years.

Five-member teams who participate in the Envirothon explore current environmental and earth sciences within the framework of five disciplines: aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife, and a current environmental topic known as the "fifth topic."

The winning margin for Moorefield Gold over the second-place Ravenswood FFA team, the winners of the 2022 and 2023 WV Envirothon, was incredibly narrow, with Moorefield scoring 493 total points and Ravenswood scoring 491.60 points. 

Ravenswood FFA’s students will share a $4,000 scholarship. The Funguys team of Jefferson High School came in third place ($3,000 scholarship), the Coal Sinks team from Clay County High School fourth ($2,000) and the rookie Morgantown High School team fifth ($1,500).

The students from Morgantown also won the Rookie Team Award for being the highest-placing rookie team during the competition. Ravenswood FFA won the Top FFA Team Award.

Rounding out the Top 10 teams were the Hampshire FFA 1 team in sixth place, Doddridge FFA in seventh, Mavericks Purple of James Monroe High School in eighth, Berry’s Hellbenders of Parkersburg High School in ninth and the Hellbenders team from Clay County High School in 10th.     

Teams also won $500 each for scoring highest in each of the five stations. Morgantown won the aquatics station award. Ravenswood FFA won the forestry station award and split the soils station award with Moorefield Gold, as the two teams were tied. Ravenswood FFA also won the wildlife station award, while the Crab Apples team from Webster County High School won the fifth topic award.

This year’s fifth topic scenario was: “Renewable Energy, Sustainable Bioenergy Production and the Challenge of Nitrate Runoff.” Students played the role of owners/operators of a 250-acre West Virginia farm, who saw a decline in profits from traditional crops. The students investigated how to utilize renewable energy to increase profits, protect local ecosystems, and incorporate renewable energy into their operations.   

The statewide competition also tested students’ problem-solving abilities and knowledge about the environment, natural resources, and conservation.

Teams participated from Braxton, Clay, Doddridge, Hampshire, Hardy, Jackson, Jefferson, Marion, Monongalia, Monroe, Nicholas, Pocahontas, Roane, Tyler, Upshur, Webster, Wood and Wyoming counties.

Sponsors for the West Virginia Envirothon include the Weyerhaeuser Foundation, Berkshire Hathaway Energy Gas Transmission and Storage, the West Virginia Conservation Agency, the Elk Conservation District, the Northern Panhandle Conservation District, the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, the EQT Foundation, Toyota Motor Manufacturing of WV, the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the West Virginia Department of Education and the Northern Panhandle Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Council.

Numerous volunteers make up the West Virginia Envirothon Committee, which includes representatives from the West Virginia Association of Conservation Districts, the West Virginia Division of Forestry, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, the West Virginia Conservation Agency, USDA-NRCS and several of the state’s 14 conservation districts.