LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Water is supposed to be an inherent human right, but what happens when money stands in the way? As officials investigate and try to calm fears about the water in East Palestine, people living in Martin County, Kentucky are wondering what's happening to fix their water issues.
It's a story that's been unfolding for decades. Residents have complained of constant water shut-offs and boil water advisories while paying some of the highest rates in the state. Local officials say a lack of money is standing in their way.
THE ISSUE
"We don't like being the Flint, Michigan of the south," said newly-elected Judge Executive Lon Lafferty.
In Martin County, where beauty is not hard to find but the poverty rate is higher than the national average, it's been decades since some community members have drunk the public water.
"It's frustrating. It comes through the tap and sometimes it looks like pure milk," said resident Michell Crum.
Out of 97 residents surveyed in 2018 and 2019, 96% told researchers with the University of Kentucky, they primarily rely on bottled water for drinking. While 55.7% said they use tap water for cooking.
In 2020, private company Alliance Water took over the water district's operations. Division manager Craig Miller says a lot has changed since then — including getting a clarifier back online.
"The reality of it is the Martin County Water District's water quality has met or exceeded the division of water standards for over five years," said Miller.
Miller says the water is clean, but the district needs to repair booster stations, replace water lines, and replace 13 different types of water meters in order to fix leaks, and service disruptions. However, the water district can't afford it.
"In order for this system to be sustainable, it has to be financially sustainable. They have to be able to finance their own projects. The employees need vehicles. They have none. Currently, Alliance has provided every vehicle and excavator and trailer and dump trailer for the crew to use in Martin County, which is outside of their contract obligations," said Miller.
Lafferty says the county doesn't have the budget and despite the grants they have received, it's not enough.
"It's very difficult for our county government to offer even the basic services of water sewage and law enforcement," said Lafferty.
In the past five years, there have been multiple people in the role of judge-executive. Lafferty says they won't dwell on the past but will promise improvements in the future.
"We understand that we, certainly as a people, could have done a better job over the last several decades of managing our resources, providing better oversight when the lines were laid in a haphazard manner, in a substandard manner. But I can tell you that going forward, there are many people in our county who are educated and are involved in the process. I don't expect that some of the problems we saw from a mismanagement standpoint in the past to occur in the future," said Lafferty.
In 1964, Martin County was one of the faces of President Lyndon B. Johnson's war on poverty.
In 2023, as coal use continues to decline, the community once seen as a vital economic force for Kentucky has an unemployment rate double the national average.
WHAT IS THE STATE DOING?
LEX 18 reached out to the Energy and Environment Cabinet, which oversees and regulates public water systems, multiple times for this story. We did not receive a response by the time this story was published.
The number floating around right now is $60 million to fix water issues. Lafferty says it's not firm, but a good estimate.
Miller isn't estimating but working on a plan to calculate the true cost.
In his weekly Team Kentucky address, Governor Beshear said he was working on it.
"Certainly, something as large as what the judge is talking about, the total amount that might be needed would take an appropriation from the general assembly, but we are working directly with the judge — working to set up meetings with the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority, the Division of Water and USDA, which is rural development to see what kind of federal help there may be. Everybody deserves clean drinking water, and this is probably the area with the biggest challenge," said Gov. Beshear.
The legislature's agenda has no mention of sending any of the money in the state surplus to Martin County or anywhere in Eastern Kentucky for water issues this session.
However, Martin County has gotten over a million dollars in federal grant money given to states through the Cleaner Water Program, which is allocated by the state's Kentucky Infrastructure Authority.
Governor Beshear and lawmakers worked together to put more than $250,000 dollars into water projects across Kentucky since 2021.
WHAT IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DOING?
Congressman Hal Roger's office says since 2017, they've worked to get $13.5 million dollars in federal funding for the area.
Here's a list:
Fiscal Year 2023 Community Project Funding (Earmark) requested and secured by Congressman Rogers: $3.1 million to improve the sewer system in Martin County, including a comprehensive plan to upgrade the Inez sewer plant and expand service to approximately 100 households and small businesses.
Fiscal Year 2022 Community Project Funding (Earmark) requested and secured by Congressman Rogers: $1.5 million for Martin County Water Transmission Lines - The U.S Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Huntington District will use this funding to extend water lines to over 40 homes that are currently using contaminated well water and make repairs to water lines losing water.
Fiscal Year 2022: The Martin County Water District Water System Improvements Project received $1.5 million in federal funding through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 531 Program. The Huntington District, USACE and the non-federal sponsors executed Amendment #1 to the Project Partnership Agreement on 25 August 2022.
2019:
A $2 million federal AML Pilot Grant was awarded to pay for a new booster pump station, a 250,000-gallon storage tank, 1,000 linear feet of water lines, and more to improve water supply infrastructure and address current water problems in Martin County. The Abandoned Mine Lands Pilot Grant Program (AML Pilot) – now known as the AMLER Grant Program (Abandoned Mine Lands Economic Recovery) – was created and secured by Congressman Rogers and administered by the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet.
Nearly $2 million in funding was awarded through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 531 Program to improve water service in Martin County for more than 250 homes.
2018:
A $2.2 million grant from AML & AML Pilot grant for water intake modifications in the Tug Fork River. The work included installing a secondary water intake in the Tug Fork River, upgrading the Crum Reservoir dam, installing a new water line from intake to the dam, and making improvements to the district's water treatment plant. A monitoring system will be installed to allow water plant operators to check on water tanks, pump stations, and control valves within the system, as part of the project.
A $1.2 million grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission was awarded to the Kentucky Department of Local Government to replace 1,000 water service lines and meters in Martin County.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The county is relying on federal, state and private grants to help with the bill. Many grant applications close in April. Lafferty is hoping for good news.
"The hope now is that the check will land in the mail," said Lafferty.
Miller is looking for something more sustainable.
"In a perfect world, I have a plan in place, which I'm working on, that says these are all the areas that have the most need, here are the dollar amounts I need for those specific things now let me do it and don't let me wait five years to go through the bureaucratic red tape to get grant money to make it happen. That's been the biggest struggle," said Miller.
The American Society of Civil Engineers in 2019 projected that Kentucky faces nearly 14.5 billion dollars in water — wastewater infrastructure needs over the next 20 years.
