WVDEP to Hold Public Meeting on Water Quality Standards

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection is holding a public meeting Tuesday to collect and share information about the revision of human health criteria in the state’s water quality standards.

The meeting will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 14 at DEP’s headquarters in Charleston in the Coopers Rock Training Room.

According to the agenda, the purpose of the meeting is for agency officials to present information, answer questions and take public input about the revision of human health criteria in the water quality standards.

The rules govern pollution discharge into the state’s streams and rivers.

DEP’s proposed updates to the state’s water quality standards sparked controversy during the 2019 legislative session.

After more than a year of public comment and deliberation, the agency last summer proposed updating standards for 60 pollutants in line with 2015 suggestions by the U.S. EPA.

After much debate, the Legislature ultimately adopted a bill that contained no changes to the water standards. The move was supported by many of the state’s manufacturers.