Two Years After Elk River Chemical Spill

… January 7, 2016 West Virginia News Advisory & Daybook …

Two years after Elk River chemical spill:  report to show serious unresolved water issues remain in West Virginia

Ongoing Problems with Water Privatization, Lack of Transparency,
Unresolved Infrastructure Deficiencies, and Other Issues Continue to
Plague State Two Years after the January 9, 2014 Freedom Industries Disaster.      

CHARLESTON, WV – NEWS ADVISORY – Two years after the Elk River chemical spill disaster that left 300,000 without access to safe, clean water, West Virginia continues to grapple with a host of water-related issues that are far from being resolved, according to a major new report to be issued at 12 p.m. (noon) EST Thursday (January 7, 2016) during a live phone-based news conference with full Q&A.

The report by Boston Action Research (BAR), a project of the Civil Society Institute, will focus on:  prominent failures of privately owned water utilities in West Virginia; lack of corporate transparency with privatized water; the poor results of the West Virginia American Water (WVAW) response to the January 9 2014 Elk River chemical spill; West Virginia water rate hikes; and options for municipalizing the Charleston Regional Water System. The BAR report also puts the West Virginia water problems in the context of wider national and international trends.

News event speakers will be:

• Grant Smith, senior energy analyst and lead report author, Civil Society Institute;
• Cathy Kunkel, report editor, Advocates for a Safe Water System, Charleston, West Virginia; and
• Pam Nixon, Charleston, WV branch, NAACP and OVEC board member.

TO PARTICIPATE:  You can join this live, phone-based West Virginia news conference (with full, two-way Q&A) at 12 p.m. EST on January 7, 2016 by dialing 1 (800) 860-2442. Ask for the “West Virginia Water Accountability Report” telenews event.

CAN’T PARTICIPATE?  A streaming audio replay of this news event will be available as of 4 p.m. EST on January 7, 2016 at http://www.CivilSocietyInstitute.org.

MEDIA CONTACT:  Max Karlin, for the Civil Society Institute, (703) 276-3255 or mkarlin@hastingsgroup.com.

ABOUT BOSTON ACTION RESEARCH AND CIVIL SOCIETY INSTITUTE

Boston Action Research is a project of the Newton, MA-based nonprofit and nonpartisan Civil Society Institute (http://www.CivilSocietyInstitute.org), which is a think tank that serves as a catalyst for change by creating problem-solving interactions among people, and between communities, government and business that can help to improve society. Since 2003, CSI has conducted more than 25 major national and state-level surveys and reports on energy and auto issues, including vehicle fuel-efficiency standards, consumer demand for hybrids/other highly-fuel efficient vehicles, global warming and renewable energy. In collaboration with the Environmental Working Group, the Civil Society Institute has initiated the American Clean Energy Agenda (http://www.americancleanenergyagenda.org/) an effort calling for bold steps to move the United States toward a clean, safe energy future, which has been endorsed by over 110 organizations representing more than 1.7 million Americans.