Apr 23, 2012Dunlow Celebrates Earth Day with Presentation

What to do for Earth Day?

That was the question that Dunlow Elementary Principal Shane Runyon had been asking himself when officials from the Crum Public Service District asked if they could do something for the celebration.

That something was an announcement of $1.4 million coming to Crum PSD for Phase II of the water project in the Dunlow area that could bring water to the school.

Bobby Lewis, director of the U.S. Department of Agricultures Rural Development for West Virginia, spoke to the students about Earth Day and what it means for them to have clean drinking water.

Earth Day reminds us of the critical role that the USDA can play in confronting the challenges to our nation's natural resources, Lewis said.

We are once again pleased to be a part of a project that will increase the quality of life for the residents of rural West Virginia. We celebrate not only Earth Day, but the commitment and dedication of everyone associated with the Crum PSD, the Wayne County commission and the local community.

Crum PSD had originally applied to the Rural Development for funding in 2007 to construct the multi-phase Route 152 project.

Ground breaking for the Phase I was last month.

Lewis also had the students singing Happy Birthday to the USDA as the agency will celebrate its 150th birthday on May 16.

It is extremely important that we serve as many families as we can with good, safe drinking water, Commission President Bob Pasley said. This is one step closer to the dream of getting public water to all of Wayne County. Mr. Lewis tells us we are on track and with friends in the governors office, the USDA and Congressman Nick Joe Rahall, we all will still fight to get water to Wayne County.

One area that the commission is concerned about is the Nestlow project in which there will be a public meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at Nestlow United Baptist Church.

The Wayne County News, Weekend, April 21-April 22, 2012, www.waynecountynews.com