MORGANTOWN — The Morgantown Utility Board, abandoning its original plan to clear hundreds of trees in White Park for a new raw-water pipeline, is considering alternative routes that will have a lesser impact.
“We originally chose that route for pipeline in order to minimize the number of trees removed,” MUB General Manager Tim Ball explained to WAJR’s “Talk of the Town” on Tuesday. “But we failed to recognize the significance of the ‘witness trees’ along the path we chose.”
Witness trees are broadly defined as those possessing historic significance, remarkable age or exceptional size.
The MUB is attempting to construct a 30-inch pipeline connecting the new George B. Flegal Dam and Reservoir with MUB’s water treatment facility.
After some old-growth trees were marked for removal, public backlash erupted when a group of citizens voiced criticisms during an impromptu meeting at MUB headquarters last Friday.
Morgantown City Council members also were critical, claiming they knew nothing about the plan that first surfaced in four years ago.
“If people are surprised, then our public outreach in 2015 was not as effective as we thought it was,” Ball said.
While the MUB staged a series of public meetings in 2015 that outlined the scope of the new reservoir and the pipeline, Ball conceded more could have been done to inform the public.
Four years ago, Ball said, public interest primarily focused on how the project impacted the Cobun Creek Valley, areas bordering the reservoir, and land near the now-closed Kennedy Youth Center.
“Because those discussions focused on that portion of the project they didn’t get around to looking at the details of the White Park area,” Ball said.
Evaluations are now taking to place to identify another route through White Park that will have the least environmental impact. One of the alternate routes was proposed by the Morgantown Tree Board.
Whatever route ultimately is chosen through White Park, Ball vowed trees will be replanted in the 40-foot swath that must be cleared for the pipeline. That will leave only a 15-foot-wide foot path that will transformed into a new walking trail through the park.
Ball cautioned the alternative routes come with some additional costs but those are minimal compared to the potential expense of avoiding White Park altogether.
“If White Park is off limits and we cannot go through White Park anywhere under any condition, that’s going to require us to add a pumping station or a directionally drilled approach and either one of those is going to cost in the neighborhood of $5 million.”
The raw-water pipeline will be discussed again May 19 during a meeting of BOPARC.
BY DAVE WILSON
