Public Comments

I am writing to oppose any legislation that weakens oversight of aboveground storage tanks (ASTs), particularly those located near drinking water sources. Reducing oversight on these tanks puts hundreds of downstream communities at serious risk of contamination, with little to no warning or accountability when leaks occur. Dismantling or weakening our current regulatory framework is not reasonable when the stakes are the drinking water that families, farms, and communities depend on.

I urge lawmakers to prioritize public health over convenience and reject any measure that reduces protections for our water.

I support policies that promote responsible energy development in West Virginia. As the state considers legislation affecting its energy resources, policymakers should also recognize the growing role of high-performance computing, artificial intelligence data centers, and blockchain infrastructure as major drivers of electricity demand and economic development.

To Whom It May Concern,

I urge the legislature to support this as well, in order to protect our natural resources and residents from ill-advised data centers.

Our citizens have suffered from lack for years! Lack of clean water, lack of employment, lack of help to improve conditions, lack of care or concern by our state government. Now is the time! Support this infrastructure improvement to improve the living conditions for not just the current residents but for the future residents. Our Southern Coalfields need help, not just for themselves but for our entire state! Thank you.

• Mandatory pre-construction karst assessments: Require site-specific hydrogeological surveys before any data center is sited in a county with documented karst geology, identifying cave systems, sinkhole risk zones, and groundwater flow paths.
• Clear definition of 'majority karst': Establish a scientific standard for determining which counties qualify, to eliminate administrative ambiguity and ensure consistent application statewide.
• Surface water withdrawal limits: Set enforceable daily and seasonal withdrawal limits tied to stream flow data to protect downstream users and aquatic ecosystems during drought conditions.
• Water use reporting: Require metering and quarterly DEP reporting of all water consumed, creating a public record and enabling early detection of overconsumption.
• Water-efficient cooling technology: Encourage or incentivize closed-loop, adiabatic, or air-cooled designs that dramatically reduce consumptive water use compared to traditional evaporative cooling towers.
• Renewable energy integration: Incentivize certified microgrid districts to incorporate renewable generation, solar, wind, or run-of-river hydro,  consistent with West Virginia's evolving energy landscape.

Dear Energy and Public Works Committee,

Please amend and pass this bill to restore the ability of communities to have input to decisions made regarding the use of public land and water and the building of data centers and other industrial sites on our good Jefferson County land. In growth counties (Jefferson County) as the term is defined in §7-20-3 of this code, with majority karst hydrogeology, any water utilized by data centers or any developments in a Microgrid District or high impact data center project, for any use other than domestic use, shall originate from surface water whether obtained from a utility or directly by the development. "Originate from surface water" is defined as relating to the intake of water when first drawn from its natural origin, clarifying that it be drawn from a surface water course not a subsurface well.

We do not need data centers in Jefferson county!! It's not a good move for us.  It takes our precious water.  Let's not sell our souls and resources. We like farm land and need it! We like fresh water.

Please support this bill.  We need to have meaningful local control for microgrids and high impact data center developments.  Any business coming into the state that will cause water issues for the citizens need to be closely looked at and not just rubber stamped.  From what I have heard, these data centers do not employ a lot of people anyway.

For those of us in WV who rely on groundwater for our homes and businesses, we need our groundwater protected.  It would be devastating to wake up one day to find we have no good clean water to run our homes.  Our well pump broke over the summer and being without water for several days was truly awful. We have a lot of farmers in Jefferson County who would be devastated to find they had no water to feed their crops and livestock.

• You all make us pay for every drop of water we use so its fair to say that you all definitely have the funds to keep our water sanitary. Why do we have to beg for clean water? I ask that you please address this issue for as we suffer today,not only you and I but OUR family members will continue to suffer and get sick if you all don't make this an immediate priority. Dirty water leads to unimaginable heath issues and even birth defect, parasitic infections, cancers, mutations, colds, and yes death...Causing people to become weaker and weaker with every sip they take. We're not asking for material things or money were asking what God made this world of WATER..... Clean water is a matter of life and death. Continuing to neglect this as I stated above, will lead to not only my children suffering for decades but yours too. Stop being spiteful. Water isn't red or blue IT'S CLEAR OR I SAY, SHOULD BEEEEE CLEAR, CLEAN AND SAFE FOR ALL.