Courtesy of the WV Rivers Coalition & the WV Environmental Council
The West Virginia Senate voted Thursday to pass the water quality standards rule (SB 163) without updated protections for drinking water. The 20-12 vote advances the rule to the House. Read this article by the Charleston Gazette-Mail to learn more about the bill and its controversial passage through Senate Judiciary.
Join us in thanking the 12 Senators that voted NO on the bill that did not include the updated protections. Let them know you appreciate them being champions for public health and safe drinking water: Stephen Baldwin; Robert Beach; Douglas Facemire; Paul Hardesty; William Ihlenfeld; Glenn Jeffries; Richard Lindsay; Roman Prezioso; Mike Romano; Ron Stollings; John Unger II; and Mike Woelfel.
Prior to the vote, Senator Baldwin submitted a petition collected by WV Rivers. The 898 petition signers are people took action through WV Rivers action alerts demanding updated human health protections for our drinking water. Thank you!
We’ll need to put even more pressure on members of the House as they begin to consider the bill. The legislature is listening and there is a still a long way to go until the bill is law. Stay engaged!