Trenton man wins EPA video contest

Hurtling through the air above Lookout Mountain with a camera in hand is Lucas Ridley's style for making videos that he enters into contests and uses for company promotions.

But the Georgia resident wanted to expand his skills by producing an "environmentally sensitive" video. His entry in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's water quality video contest took one of two first-place spots.

Mr. Ridley's video "Protect Our Water -- Check Cars for Oil Leaks" focused on a simple message to check oil leaks to keep watersheds clean. It won in the category for 30- or 60-second videos, according to a news release from EPA.

Mr. Ridley, who has worked as a research associate at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for more than two years, said he kept the video simple, just encouraging people to fix oil leaks before the dripping oil gets into waterways and causes pollution.

He said he was inspired with the idea at his "environmentally centered job" at UTC and his own life experience with oil leaks in his car.

Mr. Ridley said he has entered more than 20 video contests, but the EPA contest was his first video competitions outside his favorite hobby, hang gliding. He is ranked 21st in the nation, he said.

EPA received more than 250 video submissions for the Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watershed's video contest from March through June 2009, according to the agency.

One of the goals for the contest listed at the agency's Web site is to "educate the public on different water pollution issues."

Enesta Jones, a spokeswoman at the EPA's media office, said in an e-mail that Mr. Ridley's video "conveys one simple behavior ... that can help prevent serious impacts to our aquatic ecosystems."