A team of Richardson High School students competed in the Texas Envirothon in East Texas recently and finished first in aquatics, first in wildlife, first in renewable energy, second in soils, second in forestry, and third in presentation. Their cumulative score earned first place overall in the state, besting a team from South Texas ISD Science Academy in Mercedes that has won the state title three times.
The team of Charlie Goranson, Joshua Hamilton, Henry Kirkland, Evan Scott and Nicholas Webb is coached by AP Environmental Science teacher Tony Strohmeyer.
The team traveled to Tyler and Caddo Lake State Park to study soils, forestry, aquatics, wildlife, and the impacts of Texas Energy Production. They had a four-hour field test at nature preserve in Longview. Then, they had to present to college professors from Stephen F. Austin State University and the University of Houston, as well as engineers from Eastman Chemical Co. and agents from the A&M Forest Service, the Texas State Soil & Water Conservation Board and Texas Parks and Wildlife about a plan to shift the state’s energy grid to Zero Carbon by 2050.
The next stage is the international Envirothon in upstate New York in late July against teams from across the U.S. and Canada, as well as from China and Singapore. Congratulations and best of luck in the Finger Lakes this summer. #RISDBelieves
