WEST VIRGINIA (WDVM) — West Virginia Senators Shelley Moore Capito and Joe Manchin announced funding for projects that the senators believe should be a right for every resident.

West Virginia will be receiving over $11 million dollars from the Environmental Protection Agency for clean drinking water projects across the state.

The funding will be divided between the Department of Health and Human Resources and two programs within the Department of Environmental Protection.

Individual awards listed below:

  • $11,011,000 – West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources
  • $227,005 – West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection – WPC State and Interstate Program Support
  • $116,700 – West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection – State Underground Water Source Protection

Both Capito and Manchin agreed that clean drinking water is essential with Capito calling the lack of access to clean drinking water a major health issue. Manchin echoed her statement, “I’m telling you that my heart goes out to the people in the 21st century who still cannot turn on a spigot and drink the water that comes out of it.”

Senator Manchin believes that the lack of access to clean drinking water is a “never ending problem.” He also went on to explain that many of the systems are dated and need to be replaced.

The senators explained that the funding allows not only for access to clean water to be expanded but to also replace and re-evaluate existing water lines and sources.

Senator Capito echoed her colleague’s statement and emphasised that clean drinking water is and should be a right of every West Virginian.

“What this (funding) does is it gets us to be able to ensure that our underground sources are safe, permitting of certain activities around water does not disrupt the water table and does not disrupt the delivery of clean water to our communities.”