Photo: Tim Kiser (w:User:Malepheasant) · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Birch River, WV: what to set up and who to call
Birch River has no town government of its own, so Nicholas County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Nicholas County School District. Most of Birch River has one wired internet choice: Citynet.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Birch River, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Birch River.
Power comes from Mon Power
Mon Power (Monongahela Power Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Birch River. Its homes paid an average of 14.3¢ per kWh in 2025, about $133 a month (its average across West Virginia).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Birch River PSD
Birch River PSD supplies almost all of Birch River. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Flatwoods Canoe Run PSD as seller) and serves 1,369 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 78% of the 7,966 systems serving 1,001–3,300 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2020, was 0.6 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. It’s from 2020: EPA has no newer result for this system.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. WV3303413.
3 home internet providers serve Birch River
91% of 68 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 85% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citynet | Fiber | 88% | 1,000/1,000 |
| Frontier | DSL | 43% | 115/7 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 47% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Birch River’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Birch River.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Birch River is in Nicholas County School District.
Test scores and every school: see Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
No town hall: the county runs things
Birch River is unincorporated, so Nicholas County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2021; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Birch River is in ZIP code 26610
ZIP codes where Birch River residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Birch River | ZIP’s residents in Birch River |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26610 | Birch River, WV | 100% | 8% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Birch River
Who supplies Birch River’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Birch River PSD (EPA ID WV3303413). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 78% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.6 ppb (Jan–Dec 2020), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Birch River?
Mon Power (Monongahela Power Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 14.3¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Birch River?
Citynet, Frontier, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Birch River?
26610. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Birch River in?
Nicholas County School District.
How do I register to vote in Birch River?
In West Virginia you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person until 21 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 21 days before). Elections here are run by the Nicholas Clerk of the County Commission. Check your registration at apps.sos.wv.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.