Competition Rules

1. Team members must be registered in grades 9-12 for the current school year.
2. Teams consist of five members from the same school, homeschool group, or local organization. Schools that cannot recruit five students for their team may recruit across multiple schools as long as a single advisor supports the entire team. This advisor must certify the need to combine schools in order to recruit a full team. No more than two alternates may be substituted at the state contest without pre-approval by the WSE Committee. Teams with less than five members can participate at state but are not eligible to qualify for the NCF-Envirothon Competition. In the event of an emergency that would prevent a registered five member team from competing in the state competition, the WSE Committee may allow a team to compete with fewer than five members. The team advisor must certify the legitimacy of the emergency. A review panel will determine if a penalty shall be assessed to a team in the oral presentation for the absence of a complete five member team.
3. An adult advisor must accompany teams and is responsible for the behavior of team members at all times during the competition, including studying, testing, meals, and free time. The WSE Committee, hosting conservation district, and hosting site personnel will not be responsible for improperly chaperoned teams.
4. The Washington State Envirothon competition shall consist of five resource stations based on soil/land use, forestry, wildlife, aquatic ecology, and the current environmental issue.  Additionally there will be an oral presentation based on the current environmental issue.
5. Decisions made by judges, test proctors, and graders are final for all testing events.
6. Transportation will be the responsibility of each participation team. The first day dinner, the second day breakfast and lunch, and overnight accommodations will be provided.
7. Envirothon is not a place for public or private sexual behavior. Teams should plan room lodging according to school policy and aim to reduce opportunity for inappropriate behavior. Competition organizers will communicate with teams about lodging needs. Lodging quarters are considered private and for rest and sleeping only. Teams should not visit other rooms or use lodging quarters for team meetings or socializing. While WSE prefers that chaperones room with students, there is flexibility if this is contrary to school policy.
8. School medical release forms shall be provided for each team member. The advisor should keep the original with them, and a copy should be provided to WSE organizers at registration.
9. Scores for the five resource stations will be 100 points each and the Oral Presentation will be 200 points. The winning team is the team with the highest cumulative point total from the six test stations. Should there be a tie for the highest cumulative points the winning team will be determined first by their score from the Oral Presentation. If there is still a tie, the scores will be compared next by the Aquatic Ecology test, then the Forestry test, then the Wildlife test, and lastly the Soils/Land Use test.
10. During the entire competition day, team members must wear the State Envirothon t-shirt that was issued to them at registration. Team members may not wear or carry items that indicate which school or conservation district they are representing. There is no need to change clothes for any part of the competition.
11. Rules are subject to change. Any and all relevant changes will be explained to all teams and advisors at an affected Envirothon competition.
12. No tobacco, intoxicants (other than prescription medications), or weapons are allowed on site. Students found intoxicated or with weapons of any kind (including knives) will be asked to leave the competition. All Washington State laws will be strictly enforced.
13. No outside study materials or unauthorized electronic devices (such as cell phones, portable music players, etc.) will be allowed during oral presentation preparation or the day of competition. If a student uses electronic devices or outside study materials during competition or competition preparation, their team will be disqualified.
14. All students must be in their rooms by 11:00 P.M. This curfew will be strictly enforced. Any violation of the rules by a team member or an advisor may result in that team being disqualified from a competition.
15. Respect other people, the land, and property while at the competition. We would like to leave the community with a good impression of Envirothon and its participants.