Competition Rules

  1. Non-adherence to the rules below will result in the team being disqualified.

  2. Competitors must be enrolled in grades 9 through 12 or equivalent at the time of registration.

  3. All team members must be from the same school or homeschool chapter. Any number of teams may compete from one school at regional events. A local homeschool chapter is equivalent to one school. Schools with 2 or more Envirothon teams must attend the same regional competition.

  4. Each team must have an adult advisor. Advisors may be teachers, parents, or a member of the community. Advisors are responsible for registering, coordinating transportation to and from competitions, and assisting the team in preparing for the competition.

  5. Each team will have a minimum of three and a maximum of five team members, plus one optional alternate team member. If having an alternate, their name must appear on the competition’s team roster. The same three to five team members compete during the entire competition and at the regional and state competitions. The alternate may not substitute unless one of the members becomes incapacitated at an event or if one team member is unable to attend the State competition. The alternate does not have to be present at the regional competition.

  6. Only advisors, competing team members, and their alternates are allowed to attend competitions. There will be NO alternate teams at the State competition.

  7. No team or team member will be allowed to leave the testing area while tests are being administered without judge’s approval.

  8. Advisor(s) and alternates cannot assist or communicate with their team in any way and must stay at least 20 feet from their team(s) during the competition. Advisors and alternates are not allowed to visit testing stations before their team(s) is tested at that station.

  9. Mobile devices (phones, cameras, smart watches, tablets, etc.) are not allowed by students or advisors during any regional or State competition.

  10. For regional competitions, a minimum of two teams will advance regardless of how many teams are participating. Additional team(s) will advance to the State competition for every 5 participating teams that compete in a given regional. Numbers will be rounded up or down to determine the advancing schools (e.g., 12 teams – 2 teams would qualify for States; 13 teams – 3 teams would qualify).The first team out of State qualification will be considered the only alternate team to participate at the State competition if one of the top regional teams drops out. 

  11. Judges' decisions are final on all competitions.

  12. There are no refunds or rollover to a future Envirothon competition.

COMPETITION FORMAT

  • Teams are tested for 30 minutes per station. If there are more than 3 teams per station, the testing time may be extended to 40 minutes. Station topics are: Aquatics, Forestry, Soils, and Wildlife.

    • Station tests can include multiple choice questions, short answer questions, and field problems. Tests are site specific with hands-on activities and skills.

  • REGIONAL: The current issue requires students to make a 5-minute oral presentation on how they would solve the problem. Students may bring visual aids to assist their presentation to the judges. Judges may ask up to two minutes of questions following the presentation.

  • STATE: The current issue requires students to make a 7-minute oral presentation on how they would solve the problem. Students may bring visual aids to assist their presentation to the judges. Judges may ask up to two minutes of questions following the presentation.

  • Educational activities may be provided for the advisors and alternates that are not actively competing. 

  • Lunch is provided.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND EXPECTATIONS

For the sake of equity, honesty, and fairness to all Envirothon teams, the State Envirothon Committee recommends the following:

  1. Advisors and teams should not visit the location of regional or State competition sites within a week prior to the competitions. On the day of the competitions, teams are asked to remain in the reception/registration area until the beginning of the competition.

  2. Honesty and ethical conduct is expected of all teams.  While teams are discussing answers to test questions at the station, care should be taken that other teams do not hear these discussions.

WINNING THE MAINE COMPETITION

MACD will assist the winning team with materials and the cost of registering for the competition. However, the winning team will be responsible for arranging and paying for the costs of attending the competition. The team competing at the international competition must have 5 members.