Source Water Protection

Source water protection includes a wide variety of actions and activities aimed at safeguarding, maintaining, or improving sources of drinking water and their contributing areas.

Source water refers to sources of water (such as rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs, springs and groundwater) that provide water to public drinking water supplies and private wells. 

Public utilities treat most water used for public drinking water supplies. Protecting source water from contamination can reduce treatment costs as well as risks to public health from exposures to contaminated water.

CVI staff member guiding elementary school students through a watershed activity, using visual aids to demonstrate the importance of healthy water systems.

About the Partnership

In West Virginia, CVI works as a core member of the Forests and Drinking Water Partnership (FWDP) to protect source water in the state. FWDP is a statewide partnership comprised of federal, state, municipal and non-profit partners with the goal of protecting drinking water sources by conserving and sustainably managing forests. The idea of the Partnership came from the Southeastern Partnership for Forests and Water and statewide efforts in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The WV Partnership was started in 2022. In 2025, our goal is to staff the partnership and begin conducting outreach and education to WV landowners and residents. Please check back here for more news to come about the WV FDWP.

Local college students take part in a volunteer effort to plant trees along a stream on a farm, helping to restore natural habitat and buffer the stream from polluted runoff that degrades water quality.

Would you be interested in learning more about source water protection and what you could do to protect your community’s water sources?