By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
Beth Henry-Vance updated the Tucker County Solid Waste Commission on what projects she has been involved with over the year and what programs the Commission’s donations have helped to fund over the course of 2024. “I’m with the DEP’s Youth Environmental Program,” Henry-Vance said. “We help promote REAP, the Adapt A Highway and Make it Shine and we help with the Solid Wast Conference. So we are always happy to see a presence there at the Solid Waste Conference.”
Henry-Vance said she mainly does youth outreach and Tucker County is one of the Counties in her circuit. “The main part of my job is youth outreach,” Henry-Vance said. “And so for Tucker County, in 2024 I’ll have a couple of different things that I did in Tucker County in 2024.”
Henry-Vance thanked the Board on behalf of herself and the DEP Youth Environmental Program District 3. “But first I want to say that we really, really appreciate the support from this board for sponsoring kids to go to our Junior Conservation Camp,” Henry-Vance said. “That was the third week of June in Ripley and we had two Tucker County kids. I hear that they loved it. So that’s what we love to hear.”
Henry-Vance outlined the activities that were offered at the 45th Junior Conservation Camp. “At that camp, which I think is the 45th year of that camp, they get to have classes on recycling, Ripley the site, itself, has a solid waste training facility for the State, Waste Water Management Classes or something like that, so sometimes they learn about that,” Henry-Vance said. “We have shooting sports, DNR Wildlife Class, they do hiking, fishing, so its a great camp. We really appreciate your support.”
According to Henry-Vance, the Board also helped to fund the Youth Environmental Conference in 2024. Henry-Vance said this year’s conference was held at Blackwater Falls State Park in Tucker County. “I believe the Board also financed, put financial support in for our Youth Environmental Conference,” Henry-Vance said. “This year it took place at Blackwater Falls and that’s for 13 to 18 year olds and their sponsors. That was great and it was the second week of November. And we had a site visit to Chaffee Run Strip Mine. The DEP has been involved with helping get that reclamation process going and its just down the road. We also toured the Power Plant at Mt. Storm. That was interesting and then we went to Blackwater Falls.”
Henry-Vance said she also participated in a day camp at Blackwater Falls hosted by Appalachian Expeditions. “Earlier in the year in Tucker County I had presentations with a day camp at Blackwater Falls that was hosted by Appalachian Expeditions,” Henry-Vance said. “I think one was eight to ten year olds and then another was littler kids, like four to six year olds. My activities, we did a recycling show and tell, we talk about how long things last after they are thrown away, how long they last in a landfill. Then we did some water cycle games and we had some give aways.”
The DEP also co-hosted a day camp for 10 to 14 year olds at the National Youth Science Center that focused mainly on water conservation. “And in August, the DEP co-hosted a day camp with the National Youth Science Academy, also right down the road,” Henry-Vance said. “That was for a little bit older kids, I think 10 to 14 year olds and I had a few recycling a waste reduction activities, but the main focus was water conservation, wetlands, watersheds, they did some water testing in Yellow Creek and they did a lot of hands on activities.”
Henry-Vance said she has currently nine counties including Tucker, but that due to restructuring, she will soon be losing Tucker. “That’s mainly what I have in Tucker County,” Henry-Vance said. “I have nine counties currently including Tucker. For this new year, we’re going to restructure and I’m not going to have Tucker County anymore, but hopefully its temporary.”
The restructuring is due to a retirement, Henry-Vance said, but Henry-Vance feels confident that as soon as a replacement is hired, she will return to Tucker County. “We had our person out of the Charleston office retire,” Henry-Vance said. “So, it takes so long to hire somebody new so probably for the next six months, I won’t have Tucker County, but once we get the position filled, I’ll probably have Tucker County back, I hope.”
When asked by Board Presiding Chair Mark Holstine who would be covering Tucker County, Henry-Vance said they would be served by Susan Parker out of Romney for the first half of 2025. “For the first part of the New Year, you’ll have Susan Parker out of Romney,” Henry-Vance said.
