Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP)

The purpose of the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program is to undertake emergency measures, including the purchase of flood plain easements, for runoff retardation and soil erosion prevention to safeguard lives and property from floods, drought, and the products of erosion on any watershed whenever fire, flood or any other natural occurrence is causing or has caused a sudden impairment of the watershed. The EWP program relies on federal funding, which has been limited in recent years.

Recent Accomplishments. Six streambank sites that had flood damage from February 2003 have been designed and are planned for construction during the fall of 2004. These protection measures involve restoring stream channel capacity to their pre-flood conditions and repairing streambanks using riprap, gabions, and obstruction removal. These sites are located in McDowell, Mercer, Cabell, Kanawha, and Boone Counties.

• Boone County
• Cabell County
• Kanawha County
• McDowell County
• Mercer County

For more information on the nationwide EWP Program see the NRCS main website.

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