Todd Grinstead, executive director of the West Virginia Rural Water Association, says his organization is working to help raise awareness about career opportunities in the industry.
“We recognize that a lot of young folks coming out of high school don’t really understand what a water operator does, or wastewater operator does,” Grinstead said. “They don’t realize there’s sciences, biology, there’s technology, there’s electronics, all this is in stuff that they’re interested in, they just don’t realize.”
Grinstead and other staff at his association are planning to spend time at job fairs, vocational centers, and high schools to showcase job opportunities and a new apprenticeship program.
The program formalizes the process to reach certification status. A certified water or wastewater operator must complete about 4,000 hours, or two years, on the job and pass a certification test. The National Rural Water Association has developed an apprentice program to help states across the country meet these requirements in a structured, formal way.
While trainees in the state still need to complete hours on the job, the RWA apprenticeship program creates specific areas of experience to ensure all important areas are covered in a logical order.
“Once an apprentice gets started with a system, there is a mentor assigned to that person. It’s usually a chief operator or somebody who has a lot of years and a lot of knowledge at the water system or the wastewater system that actually will mentor this new person,” Grinstead said.
West Virginia recently changed the state RWA program to include online applications. Grinstead expects the newly approved apprenticeship will help young people enter the workforce.
“The apprenticeship program will allow an employee that’s already employed at a system to go ahead and start the program to become a certified operator,” Grinstead said. “This also allows somebody that doesn’t even have a job in the industry, they can apply.”
The new trainees are important. Some communities in West Virginia don’t have certified operators at all.
“Some of these systems, they don’t even have somebody that can be a mentor to teach them that system,” Grinstead said. “So that’s a problem. I’m not sure how we can get past that.
“The money has to come from somewhere to be able to pay these folks. I don’t know what the magic answer for that is. But it does happen,” he added. “And it’s our desire to add more operators to the field. And hopefully there’ll be enough eventually to get moved around and these smaller systems can hire somebody that’s certified that can do the job and do it correctly and those safely.”
The National Rural Water Association funds the project by paying the salary and benefits of the workforce development administrator as well as material for promotion.
The U.S. The Environmental Protection Agency is offering up to $1 million in grants that support career opportunities for the drinking water and wastewater industries. Funds will also go towards campaigns that connect locals to these careers.
The EPA wants to fund targeted internships and education programs for K-12 and college students. Projects supporting continued education for those already in the field are also welcome.
It’s been happening for years – water systems are slowly coming to a breaking point. The next episode of Inside Appalachia explores one legacy of the coal mining industry – crumbling water infrastructure.
In Garwood, West Virginia, One Woman Fights for Water
Jessica Griffith has lived in Garwood, West Virginia, in Wyoming County, her whole life. She’s a customer of Garwood Community Water, which draws its water from an abandoned mine. This past fall, she said, the water situation was the worst it’s ever been.
“You never know what you’re going to wake up to,” she said. “Some days there might be a little bit of water, enough for you to wash a couple of dishes. Some days you might not have anything at all.”
Credit Jessica Lilly
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Jessica Griffith holds her one-year-old son in her kitchen sink in Garwood, W.Va.
Just the previous day, for a few hours, Griffith said, nothing but air came out of the faucets at her house. She regularly delivers packs of donated bottled water to her neighbors. Tall stacks of water bottles – a couple of month’s worth, she estimated – remained in her driveway. In her household, bottled water isn’t just for drinking – it’s for brushing your teeth, for cooking and for bathing.
“We have to go to the store and get the gallon jugs. And to rinse – to get our toothbrushes wet – we have to pour some water on it,” said Dacoda Cooper, Griffith’s 12-year-old son.
Until October of 2015, Griffith said, Garwood residents were given a water bill for about $17 a month.
“Everybody just up and quit. There was no warning, no nothing. The bills just stopped for no reason, just everybody quit and that was it,” she said. “Nobody handed it over to anybody else to see if anybody wanted to take it over to see if anyone else could fix the problem. It was just done.”
In 2014, Garwood Community Water stopped filing formal reports to the Public Service Commission, which most recently gave the water system a $750 fine for failing to report in 2016, in addition to $75 for each month the reports continue to be late. The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources also said that Garwood Community Water stopped filing water quality reports after 2014. In April 2015, the DHHR issued a boil water notice to consumers of Garwood Community Water, which means that there could be contaminants in their water. It hasn’t been lifted since.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting attempted to contact Garwood Community Water at its latest number on file at the Public Service Commission. The number is no longer affiliated with Garwood Community Water.
How could this happen?
The Garwood water system is what the Environmental Protection Agency calls an “intractable system,” which means it has no administrative contact and no one to test the water for contaminants or submit the proper paperwork.
According to the DHHR, eight out of 911 total water systems in West Virginia are intractable. All of them are in southern West Virginia, and four of them are in Wyoming County.
Credit West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Coal Mountain Water – Wyoming County (Intractable since before 2000)
Pierpoint Water – Wyoming County (Intractable since before 2000)
Herndon Heights Community Water – Wyoming County (Intractable since 2008)
Garwood Community Water – Wyoming County (Intractable since 2015)
Hiawatha Community Water – Mercer County (Intractable since before 2000)
Kanawha Falls Community – Fayette County (Intractable since 2007)
Otoole Water – McDowell County (Unknown)
Prenter Water Company – Boone County (Intractable since 2007)
William Baisden, the general manager with the Logan County Public Service District, said Garwood Community Water’s problem began two years ago with a drought. To make things worse, the water operator responsible for the system was seriously injured sometime this past fall. That left Garwood without anyone to maintain the system. The system worked without major issues until fall last year, when the town went weeks without water.
Credit Jessica Lilly
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Twelve-year-old Dakoda Cooper lives in Garwood, W.Va.
Will the Garwood system be fixed?
The neighboring town of Alpoca has experienced fewer water-related issues ever since the Eastern Wyoming County Public Service District, which is currently being overseen by the Logan County Public Service District, began helping with a new project to replace the water lines. It was funded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a Small Cities Block Grant and the West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council. Engineers expect to have enough money left over to fund water line extensions to parts of Garwood, but they won’t know for sure until spring this year.
“You know, I think a lot of it’s just where we are a such small town, we kind of get overlooked,” Griffith said. “You live in a place that don’t have a store and it don’t have a post office and people tend to forget about you, even though we are a community. We work together and we do stuff. It’s not fair that we get overlooked, not just from other places but from our government. We’ve reached out out to them and we haven’t gotten any help.”
In the meantime, Griffith has made calls to elected officials and even wrote a letter to President Donald Trump.
She finally found the answers she was looking for at the Logan County Public Service District.
In a meeting with the Logan County Public Service District in December 2016, the District pointed out that they had approached the community about working to find a solution a few years ago – with little success.
This time, they advised Griffith and the community to elect leaders to spearhead the effort to “hook up” the Garwood system to the Eastern Wyoming County and Logan County Public Service Districts. Hooking up will mean that the residents of Garwood will have to start paying a water bill again. Griffith was elected president.
The project is expected to move forward this summer.
What are the risks of using mine water as a drinking source?
Every water system in the country is required under the EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Act to test for certain contaminants. Garwood stopped reporting test results to the DHHR after 2014. The DHHR said that typically, systems that fail to report are issued a series of violations. But because no one is responsible for Garwood Community Water, there is no one to penalize. The best the DHHR could do, a spokesman said, was issue boil water notices.
“To discontinue a public water system would create problems with sanitation and in some instances fire protection. This would be a very difficult action to take with a community,” the spokesman wrote in an email. “As these communities remain a public water system, one method of attempting to protect public health is to continue issuing boil water notices to these areas.”
Paul Ziemkiewicz, the director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University, took a look at a list provided by the DHHR of test results reported by Garwood Community Water between 2000 and 2014. He said that the water between those years actually seemed to be of decent quality.
“For example, THM – the numbers I am seeing here are less than 5 micrograms per liter. The Safe Drinking Water Act level is 80. So these numbers are well below that,” he said.
Ziemkiewicz is familiar with mine water from southern West Virginia. He said he typically looks for iron, manganese, selenium and sulfate in water that comes from a mine. For water systems with poor infrastructure, he also looks for coliform, a bacteria that originates from an animal or a human’s gut. In 2000, 2007 and 2008, Garwood Community Water reported coliform at levels that exceeded EPA standards.
“It can come from humans, or animals,” Ziemkiewicz said. “But generally when you see coliforms, you wonder about sewage.”
Boiling water will kill off any coliform. And because the water hasn’t been tested since 2014, residents remain on a boil water advisory.
But wait … there’s more
This report is part of an episode of Inside Appalachia. You can hear more about these systems by listening to the audio on this page or subscribing to the podcast. Inside Appalachia airs on West Virginia Public Broadcasting Sundays at 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
For all of the concerns about water compromised by natural and industrial sources (and the cancer, decay, infection, and disease that can come with that contamination), director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute, Paul Ziemkiewicz said the biggest threat in water supplies in southern West Virginia (and many areas in the state) by a long shot is raw sewage.
“Any contaminant you can think of pales in comparison to raw, untreated sewage,” Ziemkiewicz said.
We’re talking about bacteria, parasites, and viruses that can cause short-term problems like diarrhea, eye infections, respiratory infection, and long-term problems like cancer, Dementia, and diabetes. And there are growing concerns about potential illnesses or effects from exposure to pharmaceuticals and synthetic hormones introduced through sewage.
Straight Pipes
Maggie Nevi is the Project Coordinator for the Waste Water Treatment Coalition in McDowell County. The coalition’s main objective is to end the practice of straight piping:
“Right now 67 percent of the county has no form of waste water treatment whatsoever. And they do what’s called straight-piping which is exactly what it sounds like.”
Straight Piping: some PVC pipe runs every drain (sink, shower, tub, washing machine, and toilet) straight into the creek.
Tourism?
The idea behind Waste Water Treatment Coalition in McDowell County is to improve the health and well-being of the people who live in McDowell County of course, but also for people who want to visit the area. Nevi explains how the county has benefited from state investments, (with the Hatfield and McCoy Trail system, for example) but Nevi says right now, ATV enthusiasts that visit should be concerned.
“They pretty-much could be riding through raw sewage, depending on the area that they are in,” Nevi said.
Nevi worries about eye, ear, nose, and throat infections, especially for ATV riders who splash through creeks without helmets or goggles.
Wetlands
The Waste Water Treatment Coalition is taking steps to mitigate some areas of concern. In the small community Ashland, for example, they established a wetland which absorbs and cleans up a lot of crap.
Nevi explains, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s acceptable rate for fecal coliform per mL of water is 200 parts per mL. In Ashland, before the wetland, the organization was finding 200,000 parts per mL. (Fecal coliform is an indicator that sewage is present in water…)
Public Health Crisis
At the WV Water Research Institute, Director Paul Ziemkiewicz says 67 percent of homes in McDowell County not having a sewage treatment… is a public health crisis.
He explains that many of the pathogens you might encounter can be killed off by boiling water but…
“You don’t boil water to take a shower. The kids play in the little plastic pool out back. Are you boiling all that water, too? People drink this stuff they get in contact with it, they’re washing their faces with it,” Ziemkiewicz said, “and that’s bad stuff!”
In fact, whenever Ziemkiewicz or any researchers from his organization study water in the area, he requires inoculations for Hepatitis B and A.
Water Studies
Meanwhile water studies are underway. West Virginia University’s School of Public Health is currently studying water samples from throughout southern West Virginia in an effort to grasp a finer understanding of chronic and acute problems the community faces with water supply issues.
But to be clear—these problems might exist in southern West Virginia to a larger degree, but raw sewage, naturally occurring manganese, and industrial impairment are problems that exist all through the state and region.
Public health expert from WVU, Michael McCawley said it falls on not only citizens within southern counties to be educated about risks and searching and moving toward solutions, but all citizens throughout this state, and the region.
In an ongoing look at water infrastructure challenges in the southern region of West Virginia, we consider possible health effects of long-term exposure to contaminated water sources. First: the health impacts of industrial contamination, as well as naturally occurring pollutants.
Southern West Virginia is home to some of the worst health disparities in the country. Recent studies show folks in McDowell County, for example, have the shortest life expectancies in the country; it’s the 6th poorest county in the US.
The question ever is: Why?
Interim Chair of the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences at WVU’s School of Public Health, Dr. Michael McCawley says, all roads lead back to socio-economic status, and lack of economic opportunity. Science these days is full of research that studies how cycles of poverty and stress, and feeling like you have no choices in life, leads consistently to poor health, and shorter life spans. Pin-pointing what exactly makes someone ill, though, is almost impossible, McCawley says, because life is so complicated. But he says long term exposure to compromised water… is bound to leave a mark.
“That’s going to cause infectious disease, gastrointestinal problems, and that can lead to all sorts of other things,” McCawley said.
Industrial Contamination
An aquatic biologist from Wheeling Jesuit University, Dr. Ben Stout, found himself invested in water quality issues in southern West Virginia when he began looking into ecological impacts of Mountaintop Removal over a decade ago. Stout began looking specifically at stream impairment in areas where dirt and land from the tops of ridges were pushed into valleys.
“It was pretty obvious to me that below valley fills, water was pretty tainted, and then it became a question of, ‘Is it getting into the human water supply?’” Stout said. “I started sampling people’s houses; some people’s water is really good, other people’s water is really appalling.”
Stout has tested for and found water spiked with heavy metals and other contaminants.
“Before it’s disturbed it’s a good of water you’re going to find anywhere on the planet. But after that it becomes tainted with heavy metals and bacteria and so forth and becomes unusable except that these people don’t have any recourse,” Stout said.
It’s been widely reported that industrial activity has contaminated community water supplies throughout the state.
Naturally Occurring Pollutants
But aside from industrial activity, Stout points out that naturally occurring minerals and metals (like manganese) can themselves be a cause of serious concern—contaminants that leach naturally from the geology of the region. The effect of manganese specifically hasn’t been investigated thoroughly, but a 2010 drinking water study found that “exposure to manganese at levels common in groundwater is associated with intellectual impairment in children.”
And Stout explained, it’s not easy to get dissolved metals out of water.
“Heavy metals don’t turn into anything else when you boil them,” Stout said. “Mercury stays mercury, and aluminum stays aluminum.”
Stout said over a period of time, people exposed to these contaminants through a variety of pathways such as drinking or showers become ill.
But for all of the concerns about water compromised by natural and industrial sources, and the cancer, decay, infection, and disease that can come with regular exposure to that contamination, many experts agree that the biggest threat in water supplies throughout southern West Virginia (and many areas in the state) and by a long shot israw sewage.
While the chemical spill in Charleston left more than 300,000 without usable water, it’s a problem that folks in the coalfields deal with on a regular basis.
Mountainous regions like southern West Virginia have an abundance of water, but the terrain along with aging infrastructure create challenges, just as it has for decades.
Many of the current water systems in place today in the coalfields were installed in the early 1900’s by coal companies. The coal operators, jobs, and most people left the area, leaving remnants behind of a once bustling economy. Remnants like some beautiful buildings, coal tipples …and water systems.
For some communities a boil water advisory is a way of life … like in Keystone in McDowell County where residents have been on advisory since 2010. Neighboring sister city of Northfork has been on a boil water advisory since 2013. The water systems are currently maintained and operated by individual towns, but the McDowell County Public Service District is planning projects to take on those responsibilities.
Elkhorn Water Project
Just this past year, a project with several phases started that is expected to bring relief to the region.
Phase I of the “Elkhorn Water Project” will bring a new water system to Elkhorn, Maybeurry and Switchback. Phase II will replace systems in Elkhorn, Keystone and Northfork and Phase III will upgrade systems in Landgraff, Tidewater, Divian, Kimball.
Credit Daniel Walker
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Elkhorn Water Project broke ground summer 2014.
Phase I broke ground this year and is expected to be complete in June. Executive Director of the McDowell County PSD Mavis Brewster says she’s happy with the progress. She says the second phase has not yet been funded. That’s where Betty Younger lives.
Betty Younger: Times have Changed
A coal miner’s daughter, Betty Younger grew up in McDowell County and remembers a very different community during the 1950’s. Younger sits on her front porch which sits close to route 5–a road busy with coal trucks. She reminisces about her days in the Kyle coal camp.
Like so many coal-dependent communities, McDowell has suffered the boom and bust of the industry, and the sharp population decline that comes with it. In the 1950’s there were more than 100-thousand people. Today less 20-thousand remain in the county.
“This part of McDowell County is… I mean there’s nothing here,” Younger said.
Younger has lived in her Elkhorn homes for about six years. There have been so many water issues… she just assumes not to drink it, rarely uses it for cooking, and doesn’t even count on regular access.
“You never know when you’re going to have water,” Younger said.
Phase II will also replace systems in Northfork and Keystone. Folks in Keystone have been on a boil water advisory since 2010, while Northfork has been under an advisory since 2013.
Credit Daniel Walker
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Elkhorn water tower believed to be at least 60 years old.
When all three phases are complete, the project will replace the system that Younger and other residents currently rely on. Phase I will replace a leaky, rusty, tank that is believed to date back to the 1940’s when it was set up by coal companies.
Credit Jessica Lilly
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A water project in Wyoming County began last year when residents in Bud and Alpoca (including an elementary school) were caught in the middle of a tangled and complicated water system deal. After months under a boil water advisory, a project to bring residents dependable, clean water is now underway.
