| Cover page of the SWPPP document for permit WVR113389. |
The Observer discovered earlier this week that the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WV DEP) issued a construction stormwater permit, WVR 113389, for the Sidewinder Raw Water Line on May 26, 2026.
The cover page of the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) that was submitted as part of the permit application (image above) indicates that the permit was issued to the Charles Town Utility Board (CTUB). The document indicates the application was prepared by Integrity Federal Services, the Martinsburg-based engineering firm that represented the Sidewinder company when it was seeking a permit from the Jefferson County Planning Commission to construct a water bottling facility on a former industrial site adjacent to the historic Middleway village.
CTUB General Manager Paul Mantello said he was not aware that this permit had been issued when The Observer spoke with him on September 3.
In response to inquiries from The Observer, a representative of Integrity Federal Services said he would be investigating if CTUB was notified of the application and permit documents, which include a public notice sign that is required to be posted along the route of the project.
Update (2026 Sep 8): The public notice sign was posted in front of the Sidewinder property on Friday, September 4, 2026.
Key Information Missing
The SWPPP document included with this permit application is unsigned.
Update (2026 Sep 8): According to a WV DEP official who spoke with The Observer on September 8, the permit will need to be re-opened and modified to add the completed signature document. The Observer also discussed additional issues with the permit application documents with the WV DEP representative:
- The application entered into the WV DEP system by Integrity Federal Services in November 2025 included a non-working phone number and non-working email address for CTUB. The public notice sign document also included a non-working phone number for CTUB.
- There is no “Karst Mitigation Plan” included in the application as required by WV DEP for projects in karst topography. According to the WV DEP official, the permit reviewer relies on the coordinates provided with the application to determine whether a “Karst Mitigation Plan” is required. The project clearly runs through karst topography, but the project GPS coordinates included in the application are incorrect (image below).
Timeline of the Application
Documents available through the WV DEP online document portal show that the prior General Manager, Kristen Stolipher (who is married to Jefferson County Commissioner Steve Stolipher), signed the initial application for the permit on December 3, 2025. Stolipher resigned from CTUB in February 2026.
The WV DEP portal shows that the permit application documents (including the signature document) were entered into the DEP system between November 24 2025 and December 3, 2025. The application was not activated for DEP staff review until March 17, 2026 — after Stolipher had resigned, but before Mantello, who was hired on April 16, took on the General Manager role.
The WV DEP system also shows that a representative from Integrity Federal Services responded to several technical questions and the application was resubmitted on May 22 (the Friday before Memorial Day). The application was approved on Tuesday, May 26 (the day after Memorial Day).
Pipeline Plan Has Troubled History
The second concept plan that Sidewinder presented to the Jefferson County Planning Commission in 2024 showed this pipeline running between its water well adjacent to Lake Louise and running under Old Middleway Pike before it turns and runs through the center of the historic Middleway village. The concerns that this pipeline construction would disturb the historic structures and sites along its path were cited as reasons when the Planning Commission rejected Sidewinder revised concept plan in March 2025.
In January 2025, the CTUB Board also took objection to how Stolpher had committed CTUB to taking ownership of this pipeline after it was constructed by Sidewinder, allowing the company to name CTUB as the applicant for permits it needed from the WV Division of Highways. At its March 26, 2025 meeting, the Board explicitly directed Stolipher to bring all future agreements with Sidewinder to its attention prior to making any commitments.
There is no record in the CTUB minutes of any discussion about the CTUB board authorizing the General Manager to submit the construction stormwater permit application to WV DEP.
An Odd Timeline And Other Connections
Stolipher signed the certification form submitted with the permit application on December 3, 2025 — almost a month after Circuit Court Judge Bridget Cohee ruled against Sidewinder, blocking any further progress on the bottling facility project.
When the construction stormwater application was later uploaded into the WV DEP system in March 2026, Sidewinder was active in lobbying against several bills introduced in the State Senate and House of Delegates that would have added controls to water extraction in West Virginia. At the same time, another bill, SB 648, was passed and signed into law on April 1 2026. This new law could potentially reclassify water extraction as an activity that could be exempted from local control under certain circumstances.
The Jefferson County Commission has scheduled a special meeting on Friday, September 4 at 9 am. The agenda description for this meeting indicates the Commission will be reviewing Sidewinder’s activities to influence legislation at the same time it was laying the groundwork to build its pipeline.
Update (2026 Sep 9): During a briefing to the Charles Town City Council during its September 8 meeting, CTUB General Manager Paul Mantello said he would be recommending that CTUB restart the WV DEP application process for this project from the beginning.
Published in the Observer Weekly 2026 Sep 3. Updated 2026 Sep 8 (public notice sign placed; updated timeline information; missing information in DEP application documents). Updated 2026 Sep 9 (CTUB General Manager comments at Sep 8 Charles Town City Council meeting).
By Steve Pearson