Five years ago, Melissa Carder and her wife purchased their dream home: an 1804 log cabin in the historic Jefferson County community of Middleway. Carder was seated upstairs this spring when the walls began to shake.

“I couldn’t even wrap my head around what was happening,” she said. “I actually thought: Is that a terrorist? Is it Armageddon? Is it World War III? Like, what is going on?”

Moments later, the house stilled. Carder and her wife realized it was not Armageddon, but something else: A pickup truck had careened off the road and into the side of their house.

“I have a little five-pound dog, and a large glass painting landed within inches of her. If it would have landed on her, it probably would have killed her,” Carder said. “It was extremely, extremely traumatic.”

Carder is not alone. Two of her neighbors told West Virginia Public Broadcasting that drivers have collided with structures, curbs or trees on their properties. Some locals have even barricaded their yards with rocks to protect against stray vehicles.

The rocks along the village’s narrow, colonial streets are a visual reminder that Jefferson County is at a crossroads.

In the last 50 years, the population of West Virginia’s easternmost county has more than doubled, surpassing 57,000 in 2020, according to the United States Census Bureau. This growth means rural communities like Middleway are reckoning with an influx of traffic — plus the appropriation of more county land for industrial, commercial and residential development.

That process came to a head last month, when representatives for Sidewinder Enterprises presented plans for Mountain Pure Water Bottling Facility to the Jefferson County Planning Commission.

In a meeting that surpassed five hours, resident after resident sat before the commission and raised concerns about the project’s impact on traffic safety, water supplies, historic preservation and environmental health.

While the future of Sidewinder’s plan is unclear, residents are organizing to keep local priorities on the table.

‘Rockwool all over again’

Half a mile west of Middleway’s downtown, behind a chain link fence, an old factory site has sat vacant for nearly two decades. Before, the factory manufactured textiles, photography equipment and printing plates.

But the site has gone unused since 2006, according to its current owner, Sidewinder Enterprises, a California-based company that purchased the site in 2021. Now, Sidewinder aims to build a one-million-square-foot facility that would bottle local groundwater.

Integrity Federal Services, a civil engineering firm, presented plans for the facility to the Jefferson County Planning Commission on Nov. 12.

The commission unanimously voted that the application was incomplete because it omitted parcels of land containing the project’s water supply, located away from the main facility site. 

Still, the commissioners did not reject the proposal outright, allowing Sidewinder to resubmit their concept plan with revisions. The company did so one week later.

---

---

Sidewinder’s push to develop the Middleway-area property comes amid rising industrial development across the region.

From 2014 to 2024, the Jefferson County Commission approved the rezoning of at least 563 acres of previously rural or residential land for possible industrial use, according to local zoning amendments posted to the Jefferson County Office of Planning and Zoning website.

Rising development corresponds in part with the county’s rising population. Over the same decade, the county commission also rezoned at least 246 acres of industrial or commercial land for possible residential use.

Still, many Jefferson County residents worry the current rate of industrial development is unsustainable for local infrastructure and the environment. Some, like Carder, feel a new industrial project could make current issues worse.

At last month’s planning commission meeting, dozens of community members from across Jefferson County echoed that sentiment.

Several likened Mountain Pure to past industrial projects in the area, like Rockwool. The Danish steel wool manufacturing plant, located in the town of Ranson, sparked years of impassioned environmental protest when proposed in 2017.

The project moved ahead despite an outpouring of local pushback. But in 2020 a Danish regulatory organization placed Rockwool under investigation for air and water quality concerns, renewing worries from some residents.

“This is Rockwool all over again, where government officials know what’s happening, and they don’t tell the public until it’s too late,” said Shepherdstown resident Billie Garde during last month’s planning commission meeting. “We’re tired of being run over.”

Other commenters compared Sidewinder to 3M, the conglomerate that previously owned the site. Last year, the company had to dole more than $10 billion in a settlement for contaminating waterways across the country.

In West Virginia, residents worry about the environmental toll 3M left behind. And those worries stem from a discovery reported by Sidewinder itself.

---

Industrial Rezoning Over The Past Decade

Use the slider to toggle between maps of Jefferson County lands zoned industrial in 2014 and 2024 county zoning reports. Blue parcels indicate land zoned industrial for more than 10 years. Red parcels indicate land zoned industrial since 2014.

Over the past decade, the Jefferson County Commission rezoned 563 acres of rural or residential land for possible industrial use. These maps depict parcels of land with zoning types that allow for industrial development, though some might not be under active industrial use. As of 2024, nearly 6,000 acres are eligible for industrial development — roughly 4 percent of all land in the county. Learn more about this data. | Graphic Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

---

Toxic chemicals detected underground

Included in Sidewinder’s Mountain Pure concept plan is a 2018 geological survey that indicates a plume of two toxic chemicals, trichloroethane and dichloroethene, remains in the groundwater beneath the site.

During the planning commission meeting, residents expressed concern that water usage at the site could produce toxic runoff and contaminate surrounding water reserves. Sidewinder Enterprises did not respond to a written request for comment on this story.

But during the meeting, Nick Wolfe of Triad Engineering spoke on behalf of Sidewinder. He said the company is already engaged in a “voluntary cleanup program” with “restrictions on groundwater use” from the area affected by chemicals.

Wolfe also denied some residents’ claims that “the plume is going to migrate.”

“There is very limited and very low risk of any contamination making it to the production well,” he said.

Community organizations like the Jefferson County First Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to protect the county’s environment and historic integrity, disagree. Last month, the foundation submitted a letter of concerns to the planning commission, urging them to reject or modify the concept plan.

Meanwhile, some Jefferson County residents say they feel tired of waiting for corporations to address their concerns. Instead, they are opting for a new wave of local organizing.

Middleway turns to grassroots activism

Labor and delivery nurse Stacy Chapman lives in the heart of Middleway’s historic district. Despite her proximity to the proposed Mountain Pure site, she said she did not hear about the project until the company publicly submitted their concept plan.

Seeing the plan, alarm bells went off. Chapman said she was immediately concerned about a further increase in traffic and water usage. So she began knocking on her neighbors’ doors to spread the word about the project, urging them to speak out against it.

“There’s a sense of community here,” Chapman told West Virginia Public Broadcasting. “Families have been here through all those time periods for nearly 300 years. You can feel it when you come here. You automatically feel a part of it.”

Weeks later, that effort has turned into a grassroots watchdog group called Protect Middleway. Its members are urging Sidewinder to take steps toward safety and sustainability to protect the local community. Several of Chapman’s neighbors spoke out during last month’s meeting.

“We know the legacy of the last 300 years of people that have protected it, or it wouldn’t still be here,” Chapman said. “We feel a sense of responsibility to protect it for the next 300 years.”

The folks with Protect Middleway say they support businesses and the jobs they bring. Chapman said she wants something to be done with the derelict site Sidewinder purchased.

But they want that project to be environmentally sustainable, with a less pronounced impact on local traffic. The proposed site is a short walk from the same street where Carder’s home was struck, and where residents like Chapman worry about crossing the street.

Some locals, like Chapman’s daughter Nicole, say corporations like Sidewinder are taking away the historic allure and natural beauty that bring people to West Virginia.

“Appalachia and West Virginia take the brunt of environmental impact so that the rest of the country, specifically the heads of corporations, can benefit from it,” she said. “This is just another example in a long line of being in a sacrifice zone.”

Likewise, Middleway resident and Protect Middleway member Jessie Norris said the charm and opportunity that brings newcomers to West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle requires protection. Without more proactive regulation from elected officials, she believes growth in the county will dry up.

“When you have these precedents set, it makes it easier for other companies — whether they’re from West Virginia or outside of it — to come in and abuse our state and our resources,” she said. “Those resources, as we’re all very well aware, are not infinite.”

The Jefferson County Planning Commission will meet again Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. The meeting will include a public comment period, during which community members can address the commission.

For more information on Protect Middleway, visit the organization’s website.