Although it’s possible hundreds of Tucker Countians have never seen it, a $10 million building in Canaan Valley may be sold–with unknown consequences for those who work and live here.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOA) built the facility that now houses Canaan Valley Institute (CVI) in 2009. Employees now include engineers, educators, a hydrologist, a forester and an ecologist, 70% of whom have earned masters’ degrees. Most have bought homes and live in Tucker County full time.
The building sits at the end of a gravel road just off Rt. 93 near the newest section of Corridor H.
The ecologist, Jenny Newland, executive director of CVI, said last week that Tucker County was chosen for the CVI Research and Education Center because the area is one of the nation’s ‘hot spots’ for acidic rain and poor water quality.
Their projects, Ms. Newland explained last week, have included grants that cleared the streambanks of Horseshoe Run, near St. George; have helped reduce mercury from coal-fired facilities including one former coal mine community where the houses could not be sold and now can be; improve water quality for several community water systems; help provide a healthy animal population, etc.
“We want to stay here,” Ms. Newland, a native of Vermont, said. “We want to provide jobs without sacrifing what we love about West Virginia.”
Ms. Newland encourages the public to contact her personally and/or to visit www.canaanvi.org.
