MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- Money originally set aside to help fix a flooding problem in Inwood, W.Va., has been redistributed to Jefferson County for a comprehensive water study and "agricultural enhancement" projects at 83 farms in the Eastern Panhandle.
The West Virginia State Conservation Committee authorized the transfer of $250,000 to Jefferson County's water study and $105,816 for the Agricultural Enhancement Program, according to the Eastern Panhandle Conservation District office. Another $4,000 contributed by the Berkeley County Commission was returned in May.
Before being reallocated, the money was being used to match a federal grant of $654,800. The decision to spend it elsewhere jeopardized the grant, officials said in May.
James Moore, one of two supervisors from Berkeley County on the Eastern Panhandle Conservation District board, said last month Jefferson County had been waiting for an extended period of time to have a water study completed. Studies have been done in Berkeley and Morgan counties, he said.