Shingletown, CA — 16 students from Nevada Union High School participated recently in the 2023 Shasta Forestry Challenge, one group of a total of 95 high school students from 15 schools from northern and central California. The event was September 27th to 30th at Mountain Meadows Camp, east of Shingletown, California.
One of the highlights for the students this year was the opportunity to evaluate fuel reduction treatments at Noble Demonstration State Forest. Students will collect data and determine if the treated areas are compliant with state standards for shaded fuel breaks. During the Challenge, teams of students also completed a field test to assess their technical forestry knowledge and data collecting skills.
“Forestry Challenge is hands-on learning in its most practical form. The student participants get to try on the very skills used every day in the industry, guided by the wisdom of the professional forestry and natural resources personnel responsible for the work done to conserve our forests today,” said Nevada Union High School Advisor Reed Pritchard.
Marian Christiansen, a senior at Nevada Union High School, summed it up as follows: “Forestry Challenge helps us learn by doing. It’s a rare opportunity for us to get a better understanding of the natural environment around us and helps us learn how to manage and take care of it.”