WVEC’s 2025 Legislative Priorities

The West Virginia Environmental Council (WVEC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting West Virginia’s environment and advocating for sustainable policies and a healthy future. We are a coalition of 15 West Virginia environmental organizations. 

Energy:

Net Metering – Protect and preserve long-standing net metering rules to ensure all solar users are entitled to the existing fair market retail rate. 

Advanced Nuclear – Monitor the 2022 bill to repeal the state’s nearly 20-year ban on nuclear power while opposing the expansion of this energy source if no safe long-term storage is available. 

Hydrogen Hub/Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) – Monitor legislative developments and oppose any proposal that increases or further subsidizes carbon emissions through the use of fossil fuels. 

Clean Water and Air: 

Aboveground Storage Tank Legislation – Prevent further rollback of legislation passed after the 2014 chemical spill in Charleston, which made water undrinkable for hundreds of thousands of West Virginians. Recently defeated bills would have relaxed inspection requirements on oil and gas tanks located within zones of critical concern. 

PFAS Ban – Monitor implementation of the PFAS Protection Act to protect West Virginia’s drinking water and work toward eliminating PFAS (“forever chemicals”) in consumer products and industrial use. 

Community Air Monitoring – Prevent legislation that casts doubt on the legitimacy of citizen-collected air monitoring data or restricts its inclusion in analyses by the WV Department of Environmental Protection or the U.S. EPA. 

Water Quality Standard Updates – Advocate for WV Water Quality Standards that will protect public health and new designations for water bodies that would limit recreational use and aquatic life. 

Orphaned Gas Well Responsibility – Advocate for a bonding system, similar to the coal industry bond system, that would require gas companies to post bonds covering the cost of plugging gas wells if an operator is unable or refuses to plug later. Companies should be required to pay the bond before drilling begins.

Conservation of Public and Private Lands: 

Off-Road Vehicle Restrictions – Defeat proposals to open up public lands to Off-Road Vehicles (ORV) and other legislation incompatible with nature-based values and conservation of West Virginia’s public lands. 

Timbering and “Economic Development” in State Lands – Defeat proposals to open all public lands to timbering, undefined “economic development” projects, and other incompatible uses for public lands. 

The Rail to Trails Bill – Support updates and corrections to the WV Rail Trails Program to address railroad liability and safety risk concerns.

The River Access from Bridges Bill – Support the Public Waterways Access Act, which would provide public access to bridge crossings and fencing, implemented by the WV Department of Transportation and WV Division of Natural Resources.

State of West Virginia Scenic Rivers Bills – Establish state procedures to provide permanent safeguards for our scenic, wild and wonderful rivers, streams, and waters.

Forest Carbon Sequestration – Prevent efforts to restrict forest carbon sequestration.

Private Landowner Conservation Easements – Prevent bills that would strip private landowners’ rights and abilities to have meaningful conservation easements by, for example, 1) limiting the ability to do Agricultural easements, 2) imposing tax/registration burdens for carbon offset conservation easements, and 3) limiting the length of time for a valid conservation easement.