Morgantown, W.Va. (WVDN) — On Friday, Nov. 15, West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Inc. (WV Rivers) and H2O Headwaters to the Ohio Water Network (H2O) brought together a bipartisan group of eight legislators from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and West Virginia, to meet the Army Corps of Engineers in Morgantown, WV, to discuss flooding remediation.
Representatives from the Army Corps, Dawn Orlic and Marion Divers, informed the group of legislators and nonprofit representatives about the Corps’ work, as well as ways they support local communities’ flood resiliency planning and projects. The event also featured time for the legislators and their staff to meet their counterparts from other states, and to have informal conversations that will help build cooperation across state and party lines.
This was the second meeting convened by WV Rivers and H2O that focused on the Monongahela River watershed and its critical role in the environment, recreation and tourism, and economic development for West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland.
The first meeting, sponsored by Rep. Bud Cook (R-PA District 50), held in Waynesburg, PA, last summer, served as an introduction to some of the concerns facing the Monongahela River basin. This second meeting, co-sponsored by WV Del. Evan Hansen (D-District 79) and WV State Senator Mike Oliverio (R-District 13), featured a presentation by the US Army Corps of Engineers based in Pittsburgh. Other state legislators in attendance were WV Del. Joe Statler (R-District 77), WV Del. Joey Garcia (D-District 76), WV Del. George Street (R-District 83), Maryland State Senator Mike McKay (R-District 1), Pennsylvania State Rep. Bud Cook (R-District 50), PA Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa (R-District 51), and Eric Cowden, legislative assistant to PA State Sen. Camera Bartolotta (R-District 46).
WV Rivers and H2O are planning another meeting in the Spring to encourage collaboration across state lines on issues affecting the entire Monongahela River watershed.
“Rivers do not recognize state boundaries,” says WV Rivers Executive Director Jennie Smith. “We must work together with our counterparts in neighboring states to take a holistic approach to addressing the issues impacting communities along the Monongahela River.”
“Many of our problems and opportunities are regional and success is only realized by looking at the region and not political boundaries. It was great to see legislators from Maryland, PA and West Virginia have a conversation,” says John Detisch, President of H2O Headwaters Strategic Working Group.
One of the Nov. 15 luncheon sponsors, Sen. Oliverio, remarks, “I’m excited to be a part of this working group and can see that it has great potential for our region. Bringing together legislators from our neighboring states and focusing on the opportunities that the river presents to us from tourism to commerce while also being able to focus on keeping our rivers, safe and clean is terrific.”
Future meetings will address such topics as drought, tourism and recreation along the river, and economic development.
About West Virginia Rivers Coalition:
The West Virginia Rivers Coalition is a statewide non-profit organization working to conserve and restore West Virginia’s exceptional rivers and streams through advocacy, education, and community engagement. Learn more at www.wvrivers.org.
