Updates from WV Rivers Coalition
March 2024 E-News
Autumn Crowe, Interim Executive Director of West Virginia Rivers Coalition.
On my first day as Interim Executive Director, I experienced a little bit of déjà vu. I was sitting at my desk, writing comments requesting WV Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) update the Human Health Criteria in our Water Quality Standards as part of the 2022 Triennial Review.
WV Rivers made this request before. You might remember the 2019 Triennial Review! But due to WVDEP’s decision to only update half of the criteria in the last review process, we’re at it again!
I need your help to tell WVDEP to stop dragging their feet and prioritize the health and safety of our communities.
We’re talking about 40 of the most toxic chemicals for which we do not currently have standards. Some of them are actively being discharged into our waters.
It’s time for WVDEP to adopt all of the EPA’s recommended criteria to protect public health!
The comment deadline is this Monday, March 4. So send your comments now, and then come back to this email to learn what other actions you can take for clean water, preserved public lands, and healthy communities.
Hope for our Communities, Land, and Rivers
Reflection by the Center for Resilient Communities Environmental Justice team at WVU
On February 13th, the Center for Resilient Communities Environmental Justice team traveled to Charleston to attend and actively participate in Environmental Day at the State Capitol.
The event brought together community organizers, environmentalists, local activists, lobbyists, and legislators alike to advocate for change in our state. The event stood out for its welcoming and relationship-focused atmosphere, providing valuable opportunities for community members and advocates to engage in meaningful conversations. Our team had the opportunity to connect with folks who were participating in the day and learn more about what motivates them to be in the space.
When discussing environmental justice, we use the working definition as “the pursuit of addressing the disproportionate incidences of contamination and the right for all people to share equally in the benefits of a healthy environment” (Checker 2005). We heard stories of personal experiences or observations of environmental contamination in people’s communities as a driving force for their work. Some folks have been exposed to contaminated drinking water from the Elk River spill, experienced contaminated source water from acid mine drainage, and experienced a lack of clean air due to emissions from many coal mines across the state.
At E-Day at the Capitol, the Center for Resilient Communities Environmental Justice team helped WV Rivers staff engage with event attendees.
Participants discussed their deep love for their communities, families, and friends and their commitment to ensuring access to clean air, clean water, abundant resources, river trails, and resilient economies. These folks use their organizations as an entry point into conversations about environmental justice. They envision an economy that is diversified and stabilized, not reliant on extractive industries, where profits created are reinvested in local community development decided by those communities. Some of the ideas start with advocating for Senate Bill 532 and House Bill 5414, the orphaned well prevention act that works to plug abandoned wells across the state, and HB 5422, protecting net metering to ensure solar owners earn fair credit for electricity.
Environmental Day at the Capitol shows us that there is hope in our communities across West Virginia. Whether looking to advocate for bills, learn more about the environmental movement, or hope to build relationships, E-Day provides a space for all these things to happen. There were many agents of change present at the capitol, wanting to do something in an effort to change the current state of their communities.
By having meaningful conversations with the folks at E-Day, our team found that regardless if you have been in the movement for 30 years or are just joining, there is space and responsibility to take action. More voices in the movement are encouraged and wanted. Our vision for our state is one that this is an inclusive space that empowers more people to participate in decision-making in their communities, centers voices that are most impacted by climate change, and promotes more equitable access to our resources.
Environmental Day is a reminder that we all can play a role in contributing to shaping a more sustainable and resilient future, especially young people. The prospect of returning to the Capitol for sessions or meetings with legislators seemed less intimidating now that they had gained familiarity with the process.
We are eager to get back to the capitol and continue to advocate for the change we want to see in our communities, land, and rivers. Clean water is essential to all forms of life. Clean water is not a political issue; it is a human right!
Reminder: Chemours Washington Works Virtual Public Hearing This Monday at 6 p.m.
Residents near Parkersburg need your help telling WVDEP to stop allowing Chemours to pollution our water. PFAS contamination in the Ohio River has already reached unsafe levels, posing serious risks to both human health and the environment. DEP cannot allow Chemours to discharge more PFAS compounds at their Washington Works facility. Doing so would inflict further harm to our communities and ecosystems.
Attend a public hearing this Monday, March 4 at 6 p.m. or submit your comments by March 14 at 5:00 p.m.
Urge WVDEP to reject Chemours’ new discharge permit request and insist that the WVDEP include stringent regulations within their current NPDES permit to prevent any additional discharge of PFAS into our waterways.
Public Hearing Tip: WVDEP must respond to all questions, so use this opportunity to ask questions and drive positive change.
Pre-registration is required to attend the public hearing, click here: https://forms.gle/9wCZZphmcwh4xtEw7or call the Public Information Office at 304-926-0499 ext. 49720.
Urgent Action Needed to Protect WV Public Lands!
Urgent Action Needed to Protect WV Public Lands!
The Clean Water Mural Tour has arrived at the Parkersburg Art Center (PAC) and is on view until March 16. The mural, which was created at the commemoration of the 2014 Elk River Chemical Leak and then housed in the WV State Capitol Rotunda during the start of the Legislative Session, is a testament to community strength and our shared vision for clean water for all in the Mountain State.
Eric Engle, President of the Board for Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action (MOVCA) and Parkersburg resident, expressed his enthusiasm for the mural’s arrival, stating, “From the C8 water contamination crisis to the warehouse that burned for a week along the Little Kanawha in 2017, Parkersburg and the Mid-Ohio Valley know water woes all too well. I’m so excited to be part of an event like this that uses stunning visual art to express how much our community cares about clean, safe, healthy water.”
WV Rivers, Ohio River Coordinator, Heather Sprouse echoed that sentiment, “The mural is traveling to Parkersburg to start conversations about what communities envision in a clean water future for us all. There are serious threats to our local waters and commonsense solutions we can pursue with urgency.”Sprouse continued, “Our waters define our region and are key in strengthening our economy, retaining young people, protecting our way of life, and investing in future generations.”
Over the next year, WV Rivers invites you to view the mural when it is at a location near you:
- Jan 17 – Feb 13: Kanawha County at the WV State Capitol Rotunda
- Feb 14 – March 16: Wood County at the Parkersburg Art Center
- March 17 – April 15: Ohio County at the Ohio County Public Library
- April 15 – May 10: Monongalia County at the Morgantown Public Library
- May 10 – June 10: Tucker County at the Five Rivers Library
- June 10 – July 10: Jefferson County at the Bolivar-Harpers Ferry Public Library
- July 10 – August 7: Pocahontas County at the Green Bank Public Library
- Aug 8 – Sept. 10: Greenbrier County at the Greenbrier Valley Visitor Center
- Sept 10 – Oct 10: McDowell County at the McDowell Public Library
- Oct 10 – Nov 10: Fayette County at the Visit Fayetteville Convention and Visitors Bureau
- Nov 10 – Dec 10: Cabell County at the Cabell County Public Library
- Dec 10 – Jan 9: Braxton County at the Sutton Public Library
- Jan 9 – Feb 10: Kanawha County at the Kanawha County Public Library
WV Rivers, MOVCA, and PAC invite you to view the mural during regular operating hours (Tuesday – Saturday, 10 AM–5 PM) or during these two upcoming community events:
CW4A Mural Tour: Parkersburg
Join West Virginia Rivers Coalition and Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action for a free, family-friendly event at the Parkersburg Art Center to learn more about our shared vision for clean water along the Ohio River. The event is on March 9, 2024 from 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm.
Art-O-Rama
Art-O-Rama is a FREE community arts day at the Parkersburg Art Center on March 16, 2024, from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm with non-profits in the area! This is a day of music, art demonstrations, make-and-take crafts, nature study, science, and creative fun for children and their families.
