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United States Office of Communications, EPA-171-F-98-009
Environmental Protection Education, and Media Relations August2001
Agency (1704)
Youth Awards
President's Environmental Youth Awards
Since 1971, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) has sponsored the President's Environmental
Youth Awards (PEYA) program which recognizes
young people across America for projects which
demonstrate their commitment to the environment.
Young people in all fifty states and U.S. territories are
invited to participate annually in the PEYA program,
which offers youth, individually and collectively an
opportunity to become an environmental force within
their communities. The program encourages
individuals, school classes, schools, summer camps,
public interest groups, and youth organizations to promote local environmental awareness and to
channel this awareness into positive community involvement. The PEYA program has two
components: the regional certificate program and the national awards competition.
Regional Certificate Program
Regional certificates are awarded by EPAs ten regional offices year round. Therefore,
applications may be submitted to the regional offices at any time throughout the year. All
participants in the regional certification program receive certificates signed by the President
of the United States honoring them for their efforts in environmental protection.
National Awards Competition
One outstanding project from each of the ten EPA regional offices is selected for national
recognition. National individual project winners, or one representative from a national
award-winning group project, along with one project sponsor, are honored by EPA
Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Judging Criteria
Regional award panels judge environmental projects based on several factors. These factors
include the environmental need for the project, the project's ability to reach its goals, the
long-term environmental benefits of the project, the positive environmental impact on the local
community, and the extent to which the project was designed, coordinated, and implemented due
to youth initiative in the project.
Role of the Sponsor
Each project must have an adult sponsor who plays an important role in helping a young person
or groups of young people carry out their projects and apply for the awards. The sponsor can be
a teacher, youth group advisor, summer camp counselor, or community leader. Young people
must work closely with the sponsor throughout the project and application process.
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Application Deadline
Applications for the regional certificate program may be sent to the EPA regional office where the project is located at
any time throughout the year. To participate in the annual national awards competition, projects must be completed
and applications must be postmarked by July 31st of the award year. All applications must be mailed to the
appropriate EPA regional office. Contact the regional office that represents your community for an application or
more information about the program.
Examples of Past Winners
1999 Winner
Morgan Danielle Dusck
Paoli, Indiana
"Seasonal Deviations of Lake Patoka Water Quality"
In her junior year, Morgan Danielle Dusch researched Patoka Lake, a man-made lake in southern Indiana, by
conducting in-depth chemical, bacterial, and physical tests. The primary purpose of the research project was to
determine whether the water quality and chemical purity of the lake's perennial entry streams are deteriorating and to
determine the sustainability of the lake.
Patoka Lake's recreational facilities have become very popular, and the beauty and convenience of the lake draw
campers, boaters, swimmers, hunters, and fishermen from neighboring states. Visitation and use of the site, however,
come with a price — contamination. People affected by the decreasing water quality of the lake include 50,000
individuals who rely on Patoka for their drinking water.
Studying stressors, Dusch found through her research that a variety of activities have altered the water quality of the
lake. She compared historical data with seasonal data she collected and made a series of projections about the lake's
health 25 years in the future. In fact, comparative data from Dusch's evaluation of relative risk showed that, according
to chemical and bacterial data, Patoka Lake no longer would be able to sustain life after 2015. According to Dusch's
geological and physical data, Lake Patoka has a sustainability projection of 25 years — 55 years less than the original
projection. At the request of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with which Dusch had been invited to test the water,
administration monies have since been allocated for the temporary repair of a grout curtain below Patoka Dam to keep
users of the lake's water safe and provide water for future years.
2000 Winner
Michael Penlctnd, Eric Soderquist, and Paul Kim
Soldatna, Alaska
"Soldatna Creek Park Project"
As a community project for their government class and for the annual Caring for the Kenai contest, Michael Penland,
Eric Soderquist, and Paul Kim of Soldotna, Alaska designed and installed a fish habitat restoration and protection
project at Soldotna Creek Park. The purpose of the students' project was to decrease the adverse effects of public use
on the habitat in the park, while improving the accessibility and functionality of the facility The students' work
assisted in reducing trampling damage at the site caused by anglers, resolved design problems related to work
previously performed at the site, and restored healthy vegetation to previously damaged riparian areas of the mouth of
Soldotna Creek and the banks of the Kenai River. The project improved accessibility by adding pullout areas along the
existing elevated walkway with benches and areas for wheelchairs where people can sit and observe activity on the
river.
The students coordinated their project with staff of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the Alaska Division of
Parks, local businesses, and the Kenai River Sportfishing Association. The students conducted all necessary planning
and fund raising, completed permit applications, and performed the manual labor for the project. They learned about
the time-consuming complexities of codes and permitting and planning requirements. In the fall, they prepared the
site by clearing debris. The three students filmed their progress and used the video to make presentations to agencies
and potential donors. During the winter, they raised funds in the community and collected building materials donated
or discounted by companies in the area. They also cut out and assembled parts in the Soldotna city shop while the
waterfront was iced up. In the summer, the three students installed a stairway to help prevent destruction of the bank
by foot traffic and a cantilevered fishing platform that would allow anglers and sightseers to approach the waterway
without harming its fragile habitat. They also built four alcoves and benches along the river, planted a living fence
consisting of alder and willow along the top portion of the Soldotna access point to discourage trespassing onto private
property, and used earthwork willows and coconut mats to promote revegetation by the creek.
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The students collected more than $15,000 for the project. The initial time estimate for the project was two weeks; the
actual time spent was more than a thousand hours to build the walkways and fishing platforms and restore the bank
habitat. Michel Penland said the project taught the students valuable lessons about how things happen in the real
world, but added that the effort was worthwhile because it allowed them to return something to the community
EPA Regional Offices
EPA. REGION 1
Wanda Rivera
1 Congress Street, Suite 1100 (MCS)
Boston, MA 02114-2023
(617) 918-1113 or Fax: (617) 918-1124
Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New
Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
EPA REGION 2
Cecilia Echols
290 Broadway - 26th Floor
New York, NY 10007
(212) 637-3673 or Fax: (212) 637-4445
New Jersey, New Jork, Puerto Rico, Virgin
Islands
EPA REGION 3
John Blickensderfer
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-2049
(215) 814-5572 or Fax: (215) 814-5102
Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania,
West
EPA REGION 4
Alice Chastain
61 Forsyth Street, S.W.
Atlanta, GA 30333
(404) 562-8314 or Fax: (404) 562-8335
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,
Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee
EPA REGION 5
Megan Gavin
77 West Jackson Boulevard - (PI-19J)
Chicago, IL 60604
(312) 353-5282 or Fax: (312) 353-1155
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota,
Ohio, Wisconsin
EPA REGION 6
Patty Senna
1445 Ross Avenue
Dallas, TX 75202-2733
(214) 665-7178 or Fax: (214)665-2118
Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico,
Oklahoma, Texas
EPA REGION 7
Denise Morrison
726 Minnesota Avenue
Kansas City KS 66101
(913) 551-7402 or Fax: (913)551-7066
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska
EPA REGION 8
Jan Osborne-Moorey
999 18th Street, Suite 500, (8OC)
Denver, CO 80202-2466
(303) 312-6613 or Fax: (303) 312-6961
Cokrado, Montana, North Dakota, South
Dakota, Utah, Wyoming
EPA REGION 9
Bill Jones
75 Hawthorne Street (PPA-1)
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 947-4276 or Fax: (415) 947-3519
Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada,
American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of
Northern Mariana Islands
EPA REGION 10
Sally Hanft
1200 Sixth Avenue (EXA-142)
Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 553-1207 or Fax: (206) 553-0149
Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
For additional information, visit the World Wide Web at
http://www.epa.gov/enviroed
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