OSWEGO COUNTY – The Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District (OCSWD) held its 31st annual Oswego County Envirothon on May 4 at Camp Hollis in Oswego. The competition tests high school students on their knowledge of natural resources in New York State.
Students from Altmar-Parish-Williamstown (APW) High School, Paul V. Moore High School in Central Square, G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, Hannibal High School, John C. Birdlebough High School in Phoenix, Oswego High School and Pulaski High School participated in the event.
They completed hands-on exams covering a variety of topics such as aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife and current environmental issues. Prior to the event, the students also completed a verbal presentation component that was scored by a panel of judges.
Oswego High School was the winner of the 2023 Oswego County Envirothon and will advance to the New York State Envirothon hosted at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y. at the end of the month. G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton came in second place overall and APW High School Team 2 placed third overall.
The competition also presented first and second place awards in individual categories:
- Aquatics – Oswego High School, Pulaski High School
- Forestry – Oswego High School, G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton
- Soils – Oswego High School, John C. Birdlebough High School in Phoenix
- Wildlife – G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, Pulaski High School
- Current Issues – Oswego High School, Hannibal High School
- Presentation – APW High School Team 2, APW High School Team 1
- Team Spirit – APW High School Team 2, Paul V. Moore High School in Central Square
- Most Unified Team – G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, Oswego High School
Past Oswego County Envirothon champions include teams from Paul V. Moore High School in Central Square, G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, Pulaski High School, APW High School and Oswego High School.
OCSWD is grateful to Oswego County Coordinator of Recreation and Youth Development Zach Grulich for his help with logistics, equipment and welcoming school teams.
It also extends its gratitude to the many volunteers and partners who helped write exams, monitor stations and score tests. They included Jim Everard, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Stacy Furgal, New York Sea Grant; Linda Brosch and Sarah McCormick, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oswego County; Elizabeth Marks and Amy Langner, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) – Natural Resources Conservation Service; Nicole Schmidt and Krista Tyrrell, USDA – Farm Services Agency; Tiffany Beshures, Eric Kraus and Douglas Lindsey, Constellation; Ed Hogan, Oswego County Trappers Association; Walt Friebel, Cornell University forest owner; Marion Greenhalgh, retired from NRG Oswego Harbor Power; Paul Cardinali, retired from Paul V. Moore High School in Central Square; and Rich and Roxanne Thormann, former advisors for the APW High School team.
The competition was sponsored by Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District, Constellation Energy Corp., Indeck Energy, National Grid, Ed Hogan, Oswego County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, Agri-Mark Dairy Farmers, Compass Federal Credit Union, Eagle Beverage Company, Inc., Fulton Screen Printing, New York Master Forest Owners, New York Water Environment Association, Inc., North Shore Sportsmen’s Association, Novelis, Oswego County Trappers Association, PepsiCo, Inc., Price Chopper Supermarkets and Sandy Tuori-Bell.
Oswego County Envirothon was coordinated by Erica Schreiner, senior district technician for OCSWD, with assistance from OCSWD Manager Joe Chairvolotti, OCSWD Technician Sarra Learned and OCSWD Treasurer Laura Romanowicz.
For more information about Oswego County Envirothon or the Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District, visit https://www.oswegosoilandwater.com or call the office at 315-592-9663.
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