WEST VIRGINIA — Today, nearly 40 organizations and nine bipartisan West Virginia state lawmakers sent a letter to congressional appropriators requesting $250 million in targeted funding to address water quality in the state. The organizations wrote this letter after working with congressional offices to get language submitted to the House Appropriations Committee.

This latest effort follows the work of frontline community organizations and residents who have been experiencing and documenting the water crisis in the southern coalfields and across the state, and have advocated at the state and federal levels for years.

“This is a public health emergency,” said From Below Co-director Caitlin Ware. “Loss of fire services, skin rashes and unsafe drinking water are dangers southern coalfield communities need not endure any longer.”

The letter suggests at least 50% of the requested $250 million in funding be allocated to Boone, Fayette, Lincoln, Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, Raleigh and Wyoming counties. While many people across West Virginia are concerned about the quality and safety of their water, these counties have experienced a significant burden. Areas with high poverty levels, Safe Drinking Water Act violations and water quality issues that have persisted for over a decade would be prioritized.

Another component of the appropriations request is to fund a study from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on barriers to access clean drinking water in Southern West Virginia. The study would identify and map all communities that lack access to this vital resource to make sure no communities continue to be left behind.

Reps. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., and Carol Miller, R-W.Va., submitted the language as part of their Fiscal Year 27 appropriations requests. Rep. Moore is a member of the House Appropriations Committee. Next week, some of the letter signatories will go to Washington, D.C., to educate congressional offices about the scale of the issue and the need for including additional support for West Virginia in the upcoming Interior Appropriations bill.

“It’s great to see West Virginia’s congressional delegation highlighting the state’s drinking and wastewater issues at the federal level,” said Appalachian Voices Government Affairs Specialist Quenton King. “We urge members of the Appropriations committee to take West Virginians’ concerns seriously and devote additional federal resources to the state.”

According to the EPA’s 2023 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment, West Virginia needs to invest $4.5 billion in drinking water infrastructure over the next two decades in order to improve water quality in the state. The state’s annual budget is just $5.5 billion.

For years, communities have dealt with discolored water that stains household appliances, ruins clothing, and causes residents to break out in skin rashes. A nationwide academic study found that Wyoming, Boone and Mercer counties ranked as the top three counties in America for drinking water violations, all while residents are paying some of the highest public water rates in the nation.

This problem exists for families who pay for aging, failing municipal/public water systems, as well as residents whose well water has been contaminated by industrial practices. Both well and public water customers in the southern coalfield counties routinely spend $250 per month on bottled water or have come to rely on roadside springs for access to safe potable water. Cooking, drinking, bathing and cleaning is a daily hardship across the region.

“No one should have to question whether the water coming from their tap is safe. Across West Virginia, families are carrying the burden of aging infrastructure and contamination issues that are too costly for communities to solve alone,” said WV Rivers Policy Specialist Maria Russo. “We’re encouraged to see bipartisan cooperation at the state level around the need for clean water investment, and we’re asking our federal leaders to meet this moment with the urgency it deserves. West Virginians are worthy of clean and safe drinking water.”

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