Tag: Government

State Health Officials, Water Company Say Reports of Formaldehyde Are 'Misleading', 'Unfounded'

Officials from the Bureau for Public Health and West Virginia American Water released separate statements regarding Dr. Scott Simonton’s testimony Wednesday to Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on State Water Resources, calling his remarks on the discovery of formaldehyde in the water of a Charleston restaurant “unfounded”, “misleading”, and “irresponsible.”

In a release from the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health, Commissioner and State Health Officer Dr. Letitia Tierney said experts who have been assisting the state through this response say that the only way possible for formaldehyde to come from MCHM is if it were combusted at 500°F. 
 
Dr. Tierney cited The World Health Organization (WHO) and says formaldehyde is the most frequent aldehyde found in nature and is naturally measurable in air and water.  Formaldehyde is created through the normal breakdown cycle of plants and animals. 

“Formaldehyde dissolves easily in water and does not last a long time in water,” said Dr. Tierney in the statement issued Wednesday afternoon.

“Additionally, formaldehyde is naturally produced in very small amounts in our bodies as a part of our normal, everyday metabolism and causes no harm,” she added.
 
The Bureau for Public Health says they are unaware of Dr. Simonton’s testing procedures and notes they are interested in finding out whether another issue is affecting Vandalia Grill.

In a separate statement, West Virginia American Water said the following:

“We believe it is misleading and irresponsible to voice opinions on potential health impacts to residents of this community without all of the facts. Procedures for water analysis are carefully prescribed, outlined and certified. West Virginia American Water will continue working with governmental health and environmental professionals and, in conjunction with these professionals, we and  public health agencies will make public any reliable, scientifically sound  information relating to risks to public health, if any. As a regulated water utility, West Virginia American Water adheres to industry best practices and is in compliance with all federal and state regulations and guidelines.”

Senate Calls for Loan Program to Aid Small Businesses

The House’s bill to aide small businesses during states of emergency saw significant changes in the Senate Wednesday, giving lawmakers more control of the…

The House’s bill to aide small businesses during states of emergency saw significant changes in the Senate Wednesday, giving lawmakers more control of the aide program.

The original West Virginia Small Business Emergency Act included a laundry list of potential aide written into emergency rule by the director of the Department of Homeland Security and approved by the governor

But Chair of the Senate Economic Development Committee Senator Bob Williams said Wednesday the bill was too broad and too many details needed to be considered in a hectic time like a state of emergency.

 Instead, the committee is proposing a small business emergency loan program that can be enacted through executive order.

“It’s simply going to be a loan program that will be kind of a micro loan program, small amounts, perhaps up to $5,000 per loan that will help small businesses get over the hump,” Williams said.

The program is capped at a total of $2 million and is only available for businesses with less than 50 employees who are impacted by a declared state of emergency.

Businesses will have two years to pay back the loan and the interest rate will be set at half the federal prime rate so it can fluctuate with the market.

Loan applications will be accepted for 90 days after the close of any state of emergency.

“So, when the governor says the state of emergency no longer exists, then they’ll have 90 days to go through their records and see what kind of losses they have and apply for the loan,” Williams said.  

Williams said the governor has access to $2 million in his civil contingency fund, which is a possible source of funding for the program. If the governor should need more than that $2 million, the bill requires him to call the legislature into special session to appropriate the funds.
 

Trial Begins for Man Accused of War Mayor's Murder

The trial of a Virginia man charged with killing the mayor of War is underway in McDowell County Circuit Court.The defendant is 28-year-old Earl Click of…

The trial of a Virginia man charged with killing the mayor of War is underway in McDowell County Circuit Court.

The defendant is 28-year-old Earl Click of Grundy, Va.

Click is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 72-year-old War Mayor Thomas Hatcher.

 
City workers found Hatcher’s body in his home on July 17, 2012.

 
Click’s sister and co-defendant, 32-year-old Rebecca Hatcher, was acquitted of a murder charge in November. Judge Rudolph J. Murensky II declared a mistrial on a conspiracy charge. A retrial is scheduled next month.

Rebecca Hatcher was the mayor’s daughter-in-law.
 

Two Men Plead Guilty in Meth Trafficking Case

A West Virginia resident and a Florida man have admitted their roles in a methamphetamine trafficking case. Forty-nine-year-old Howard Leon Lykins II of…

A West Virginia resident and a Florida man have admitted their roles in a methamphetamine trafficking case.
 
     Forty-nine-year-old Howard Leon Lykins II of Charleston pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston on Tuesday to maintaining a residence for drug purposes. Forty-four-year-old Richard Milton Hudson Riggall of Zephyrhills, Fla., entered a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
 
     U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says search of Lykins’ home last July found methamphetamine, digital scales, two guns and more than $41,000 in cash in Riggall’s luggage. A search of another area residence turned up more than 900 grams of high-purity ice methamphetamine.
 
     Goodwin says Riggall admitted he brought the ice methamphetamine from Florida.
 
     Both men face up to 20 years in federal prison. Sentencing is set for April 29.
 

Ex-Mingo Commissioner Sentenced to 20 Months

A former Mingo County commissioner has been sentenced to more than a year in prison on a federal extortion charge.
 
     David Baisden received a 20-month sentence Wednesday in federal court in Charleston.
 
     He pleaded guilty in October to trying to buy tires for his personal vehicle at a government discount in 2009, then terminating the county’s contract with Appalachian Tire when it refused to cooperate.
 
     Earlier this month, the 67-year-old Delbarton resident agreed to pay a total of $7,700 in restitution to Appalachian Tire and Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.
 
     Baisden’s attorney had asked for probation. Federal prosecutors sought a prison term between two and two-and-a-half years.

Rockefeller, Manchin Team with Calif. Senator to Introduce Federal Chemical Spill Prevention Bill

Tuesday morning U.S. Senators Jay Rockefeller and Joe Manchin teamed up with Sen. Barbara Boxer of California (Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee) to introduce the Chemical Safety and Drinking Water Protection Act, which gathers into one place the tools to provide oversight of chemical facilities.
 
The Chemical Safety and Drinking Water Protection Act includes common sense measures designed to ensure industrial facilities are properly inspected by state officials and both the chemical industry and emergency response agencies are prepared for future chemical incidents or emergencies.
 
Senators Rockefeller, Manchin, and Boxer said the bill would strengthen states’ ability to prevent chemical spills like the January 9th spill that contaminated the water supply in nine West Virginia counties and impacted more than 300,000 West Virginians.
 
Key principles in the Chemical Safety and Drinking Water Protection Act include:
•    Requiring regular state inspections of above-ground chemical storage facilities,
•    Requiring industry to develop state-approved emergency response plans that meet at least minimum guidelines established in this bill,
•    Allowing states to recoup costs incurred from responding to emergencies, and
•    Ensuring drinking water systems have the tools and information to respond to emergencies.
 
“No West Virginian or American should have to worry about the contamination of their water supply from a chemical spill. This common sense bill makes sure all chemicals are appropriately monitored and protects the safety of the water we consume and use every day, ” said Manchin.

Boxer said the concern over access to clean safe water is “critical.”

“Our legislation makes it clear that if a chemical poses a risk to a water supply, it will be subject to safe practices so we won’t see this anxiety unleashed again,” she said in a joint statement released by the lawmakers Tuesday morning.
 
“It’s clear more could have been done more to protect the water supply for hundreds of thousands of West Virginians,” Senator Rockefeller said. 

“This bill takes a first step toward bringing accountability to companies in the state while protecting West Virginia families and our state’s economy,” Rockefeller added.

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