Town of West Union, WV
Established July 20, 1881
County Seat of Doddridge County

The most progressive Class IV city in the State of West Virginia

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Recently, the State of West Virginia, Bureau of Public Health rated the 126 surface water systems within the state. The Town of West Union’s Water Treatment Facility has tied for Top Rank in the State of West Virginia – for two years running.

A surface water system is a public water system that uses water from a creek, stream, or lake as the source for their potable (drinking) water.

The Town of West Union’s success did not begin during the last few years, but years ago. Jon Bonnell worked for the Town of West Union for 33 years, and his efforts to keep the plant in top shape and to exceed State and Federal standards gave us a solid foundation to build on. The Town Council also shares in the credit for this achievement, because they provide the oversight for the work and budget the funds for upgrade and maintenance on the plant and system. Lack of finances and quality personnel cause many small towns to neglect their system after it is built. West Union’s Town Council understands that their system is a complex combination of interrelated and diverse equipment. The water plant was constructed in 1988; without updates and repairs, it will fail. This would be catastrophic for our customers.

Most people do not realize how complex the Town’s water and sewer systems are, and don’t know how much money or work is required on a daily basis. The Town’s operators work 365 days a year.

Charles Frey and Clarence Lipscomb are the two operators who perform 99% of the actual work. Each has been in this job for less than six years, and in that short time they have become licensed and highly professional operators. They perform the duties of lab technicians, plumbers, electricians, mechanics, and various other jobs at both the Water and the Wastewater plants. The licensing process involves weeks of schooling, years of on-the-job training, then ongoing training every year.

Charlie Frey insures the Town’s compliance with “contaminate monitoring program”. This involves daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual monitoring for both our raw water and our finished potable water that we pump to our customers. Each day, our operators perform at least 25 separate tests on the water. Over the course of a year, literally thousands of tests are performed. Many of these must be sent to independent laboratories, which bring numerous additional costs and considerations. Many of these tests are time-sensitive or must be specially drawn and prepared to ensure accurate results. Costs associated with these tests are considerable, and complying with this testing regime is a complex task.

The high ranking that the Town of West Union has achieved is indicative of the efforts of all the individuals mentioned here. It should be noted that West Union’s water system is the highest ranking small system in the state. It is generally harder for a small system to meet and exceed standards because of the lack of expertise, money, lack of commitment from its governing body, or the lack of support from its customers. This is clearly not the case when viewing West Union’s results!

Congratulations to Supervisor Duane Reynolds and the employees in the water treatment plant.