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Greenland Gap Editorial
Joe Deneault
WV State Highway Engineer
Just when it appeared we had resolved the complex issues surrounding the Corridor H highway project, another misunderstanding has arisen – this time over Greenland Gap in Grant County. Everybody is still very sensitive about Corridor H, regardless of their individual positions on earlier issues, so I hope we can take a brief, factual look at Greenland Gap and resolve this matter quickly.
First, an unequivocal statement from the Division of Highways (DOH): Corridor H will not run through Greenland Gap. Let me reassure those who have expressed concerns, this highway will pass approximately one quarter of a mile from the mouth of Greenland Gap. At no time will Corridor H be located inside Greenland Gap. I hope that will relieve the concerns which have been expressed.
We should go one step further, however. Many people of good will, upon first hearing about this issue, had suggested, "well, why not just move the highway half a mile, and end the discussion." As I have stated, we don't need to consider that, because the highway won't be inside Greenland Gap. But we need to add a little analysis about the concept of adjusting the current preferred route, even for a relatively minor distance.
The effort to build Corridor H for the people of eastern West Virginia has been ongoing for four decades now. People on all sides of the various issues proceeded painstakingly through a lengthy process, including finally a court determination, to bring us to the point where we now can make real progress.
If at this point we were to propose moving the segment near Greenland Gap even by half a mile, we would risk new obstacles in both the environmental and historic/cultural fields. We would have to study the new area to be sure we were not disturbing any environmental or historic/culture resource. Shifting the alignment further away could impact historic resources approximately one mile away in Scherr. Wetlands and native trout streams could also be impacted in the shifted area along WV 93.
The DOH would be required to complete a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) because of the alignment change. This SDEIS would require an additional 18-24 months for completion. It is anticipated that a new study would cost approximately $2-3 million. Even if the SDEIS were completed on another alignment, if any potential impacts were to occur, the resource agencies would not approve it since our original preferred alignment had no impacts.
The present routing – outside Greenland Gap – does not affect any environmental or historic resource. It is the opinion of the professionals in the DOH's cultural resource and environmental staff that any other alignment in this area would have potential impacts and cause unnecessary delays.
I lived in Grant County from the age of four, went to school there and grew up loving that beautiful part of West Virginia leaving only because the economic reality was that I couldn't practice my profession there. I take great pride in the efforts that the DOH has made to balance the protection all of the natural beauty and environmental/cultural resources of the area while providing the best highway possible for our citizens.
It seems clear that what we need to do now is proceed with this long-needed project, and get Corridor H completed.
Many people are justifiably interested in this project. I invite you to go to the Corridor H web site (www.wvcorridorh.com) to learn more about where we are now. If you have questions, you can send them to us directly from that web site, and I'll promise you a prompt reply.
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