Hamilton County Soil & Water Conservation District is pleased to announce that Smithfield Foods, Inc., a long supporter of the State Envirothon Competition, will support this year’s Central Regional Envirothon Competition in Noblesville on Thursday, March 22. The program aligns with Smithfield’s commitment to helping communities and its industry-leading sustainability program. Smithfield employees work daily to improve resource efficiency in countless ways by conserving water and finding ways to reduce energy, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and solid waste. For this reason, they are a perfect partner for Envirothon and for the hosts, Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District.
Envirothon is a high-school-aged student competition that helps students learn about natural resources and the issues facing current and future generations. Teams are comprised of five students in grades 9 through 12 with one optional alternate and one adult coach. During the competition, each team will answer questions about resource problems they have been studying in five environmental areas (soils/land use, aquatic ecology, wildlife, forestry and a current environmental issue). Teams may consist of members from a variety of organizations: clubs at high schools (environment, green, agriculture, science and academic clubs), Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts, home schooled students and 4-H Clubs. This year Noblesville High School is competing for the first time in an Envirothon Contest.
The team that places first and second at the Regional Competition moves on to the State Competition held in West Lafayette on Wednesday, April 25. The team that scores the highest at the State Envirothon Competition represents Indiana at the North American Envirothon this year being held in Pocatello, Idaho, on the campus of Idaho State University.
The Envirothon Competition is completely volunteer-based and depends on support of local businesses, donations and volunteers to make it successful. Currently, the Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Madison, Boone, Marion and Hamilton counties, along with the Noblesville Rotary Club and Purdue Extension, have been the driving force behind providing volunteers for the event. Experts from Arbor Terra, The Nature Conservancy, Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Natural Resource Conservation Services (NRCS) will round out the presentations for the subjects at the competition.
“With Smithfield’s generous donation of $500 and catered lunch for the students, we will be able to support the event logistics and create a premier Envirothon competition for the central portion of the state, right here in Hamilton County,” affirms Ginger Davis, Event Coordinator for the Central Regional Envirothon Competition.
For more information, visit hamiltonswcd.org/envirothon.html or envirothon.org.