Louisiana Envirothon Rules and Regulations

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

1. Team members must be enrolled in grade levels six (6) through twelve (12) or possess an equivalent non-traditional school program ranking. Only teams with members in grade levels nine (9) through twelve (12) are eligible to represent Louisiana in the North American competition.

2. All members on a team must represent the same educational unit (public, private, parochial, non-traditional school, group).

 
TEAM REQUIREMENTS

3. Schools/groups must register a team of exactly five (5) members and one (1) or two (2) advisors/chaperones in order to compete in the event.  High schools/groups may enter more than one (1) team. Middle Schools may only enter one (1) team.

4. Each team must start the competition with five (5) team members. The team can finish with no fewer than four (4) members.

5. Substitution requirements:

a. In the event that a team cannot send five (5) team members, the advisor, with approval of the Louisiana Envirothon Coordinator, is permitted to make substitutions for one (1) or two (2) of the originally registered team members. Each team must be made up of at least three (3) members of the original team and consist of five (5) total members. All members and substitutions must be from the same school/group.

b. In the event that no substitutes can be found, a team may start and participate with four (4) members as exhibition only. Teams competing as exhibition only will not be eligible for ranking or prizes.

 
COMPETITION REGULATIONS

6. Only registered team members are permitted on the Louisiana Envirothon competition/event site.

7. Each team will rotate AS A TEAM through the testing stations (Aquatics, Forestry, Soils, Wildlife, Current Issue and Orals).

8. Advisors/chaperones are not permitted on or near the testing circuit during the event.

9. Any team, team member, team advisor, or team chaperone discovered on, near, or around the testing circuit before the competition begins shall be subject to disqualification.

10. All Oral component and test scores are final. Tests and scoring materials will remain the property of the Louisiana Envirothon.

11. Envirothon members shall only use reference and resource materials provided by agency or Envirothon representatives at the stations. No personal reference or resource materials are allowed on the testing circuit.

12. Identification tags provided must be worn by all team members and advisors/chaperones at all times during the event.

13. No electronic or battery operated devices (i.e., cell phones,  calculators, computers, camcorders, cameras, taping devices, etc.) are allowed during the Oral component presentations or on the testing circuit. Media personnel (press, camera crew, and agency personnel) will be provided, in advance, with an identification badge.

14. No backpacks or similar cases shall be taken into the Oral component presentation or testing circuit. A small device for carrying personal items, (i.e. lip balm, medications, sunscreen, etc.) may be allowed upon request.

15. The winning team at the Louisiana Envirothon is the team with the highest cumulative score out of a total of 700 points.  This includes scores from the five testing stations and the Oral component. Each test will be worth 100 points, with the exception of Orals which will be worth 200 points.   

a. Station tiebreakers – In the event of a tie at any given station, predetermined tie breaking question(s) will determine the winner of that station.

b. Overall Score tiebreakers – In the case of an overall tie, the Orals score will determine the placement for the final scores in the Envirothon. If there is still a tie, teams will be ranked according to highest score on tests in the following order: Current Issue, Aquatics, Forestry, Soils, and Wildlife.

16. English is the official language of the Louisiana Envirothon. All materials including written tests and Oral presentation scenarios will be in English.

17. No pets of any kind may be brought on the site of the Louisiana Envirothon.

 
LOUISIANA’S REPRESENTATIVE TO THE NORTH AMERICAN ENVIROTHON REGULATIONS

Louisiana Envirothon always makes an effort to provide funding to send a team to the North American Envirothon competition.  However, if funding is not available, another prize will be provided to the winning team in lieu of the trip.  If a winning team meeting the minimum score requirement chooses to fund their own travel to the competition, Louisiana will allow this and available prize money will be given to the team for their use.

18. To participate in the North American Envirothon competition, the winning Louisiana team must have a minimum average overall score of  77.5 to qualify, no exceptions. If the team does not meet this minimum score, another prize will be offered in lieu of competing in the national competition. Only teams composed of high school students (9th-12th grade) are eligible to compete in the national competition.    

19. It is expected that the winning team (meeting minimum score requirements) will represent Louisiana in the North American Envirothon. However, in the event Louisiana’s winning team cannot attend, the next highest scoring team (meeting the minimum score requirement) may be sent in its place. No other award will be given to the winning team in lieu of not participating. The Louisiana team must also commit to participate in summer training sessions prior to the North American Envirothon competition.

20. The Louisiana Envirothon must register a team of five (5) members and one (1) or two (2) advisors/chaperones to compete in the North American Envirothon. A Louisiana committee member may take one of these advisor/chaperone slots if necessary. 

The North American Envirothon rules require a mixed gender team to have a male and a female advisor/chaperone, no exception.

 
CONCLUDING RULES AND REGULATIONS

21. Any team involved with any infraction of the rules or inconsistencies shall be subject to disqualification. If any rule is suspected of being violated, the infraction shall be reported to the Louisiana Envirothon Committee for action.

22. The Louisiana Envirothon rules are subject to change by the Louisiana Envirothon Committee. Any and all changes will be announced before the competition begins.

23. Any exception must be considered by the Louisiana Envirothon Committee, and all decisions made by the Louisiana Envirothon Committee are final.

QUESTIONS?

If you have any questions concerning Envirothon, please visit www.deq.louisiana.gov/Envirothon or contact Envirothon at laenvirothon@gmail.com or 225-219-0877.