By Riley McCoy
For The Register-Herald
Beckley — Gov. Patrick Morrisey concluded a two-day tour of southern West Virginia in Princeton where he discussed the multitude of issues that affect water quality in the coalfields.
During a live-streamed press conference at the Princeton Municipal Complex, Morrisey said the tour included seven public events and meetings with residents, officials and water system operators across the southern coalfields.
“You can read all the books, you can read all the reports, the paperwork, but until you actually get on the ground and see it, you’re not going to learn at all,” Morrisey said.
The tour comes as West Virginia faces billions of dollars in water and sewer needs and widespread problems ranging from leaking lines and service outages to long-term boil water advisories.
As previously reported by West Virginia Watch, a 2023 assessment by the West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council estimated that nearly $18 billion would be needed to repair existing systems and extend centralized water and sewer service statewide.
Asked about that estimate Wednesday, Morrisey said he was not familiar with the specific figure but acknowledged that the state’s water needs exceed the money currently available.
“We’re not the wealthiest state in the nation, and we don’t print money in state government,” Morrisey said. “That’s the federal government.”
The assessment further estimated that about 64,000 West Virginians lacked centralized water service and nearly 254,000 lacked centralized sewer service.
He said the state must address the problem incrementally by coordinating agencies, combining funding sources and using state money to secure additional federal support.
Morrisey also argued that water and sewer spending can strengthen economic development without relying solely on large incentive packages offered to individual companies.
“If the fundamentals are good, or they’re better, we’re going to attract more businesses,” he said.
Businesses consider water and sewer capacity alongside available sites, broadband, energy prices, education and the local workforce when deciding where to locate, Morrisey said. He acknowledged that infrastructure investments may take years to produce visible results.
Within that context, Morrisey said his administration visited Huntington, Wayne, Fort Gay, Crum, Williamson, Oceana, Welch, Gary and War to hear about severe water loss, limited staffing, inconsistent financing and the difficulty small utilities face when applying for assistance.
In Wayne County, Morrisey said one system pumps nearly 1 million gallons each day but loses about 700,000 gallons before the water reaches customers.
“That’s not sustainable,” Morrisey said. “Not sustainable for families. That’s not sustainable for the people in that area.”
He said smaller systems may also lack the engineers, surveys and administrative expertise needed to prepare applications for grants and loans. In some cases, he said, communities have not received assistance because they never completed the application process.
Morrisey announced $1.43 million in assistance for Gary, West Virginia but said the McDowell County community still needs additional support.
In Oceana, officials questioned why some communities receive grants or low-interest loans while others borrow money that must be repaid by taxpayers.
The governor said West Virginia has committed at least $174 million in state funding to support more than $550 million in water and wastewater projects during the past 18 months.
He acknowledged that some of the money has not yet been spent and said his office would provide a county-by-county breakdown.
West Virginia Watch also reported that more than 79% of the state’s public drinking water systems recorded at least one Safe Drinking Water Act violation in 2024. Nearly 30% had health-based violations, reportedly the highest rate in the country.
Morrisey said his administration is attempting to bring the agencies involved in water projects together so that communities do not have to navigate repeated meetings and overlapping processes.
“You don’t need four meetings on the same topic,” he said. “You need one.”
Morrisey later introduced Mark Sarver as the new executive director of the West Virginia Water Development Authority.
The office provides financial assistance to local governments for drinking-water and pollution-control projects. Sarver recently resigned as mayor of Glenville to accept the position.
“I’ve charged him not only with being our point on many of these water issues, but to make sure that he’s listening and engaging with the community,” Morrisey said, noting that Sarver attended each of the tour’s town halls.
The governor did not announce a Mercer County project or provide a timeline for a broader southern West Virginia water plan.
Read more from The Register-Herald, here.
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