§19-21A-3. Definitions.

Wherever used or referred to in this article, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:

(1) “Agency of this state” means the government of this state and any subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, corporate or otherwise, of the government of this state.

(2) “Agriculture” means the production of food, fiber, and woodland products, by means of cultivation, tillage of the soil, and by the conduct of animal, livestock, dairy, apiary, equine or poultry husbandry, and the practice of forestry, silviculture, horticulture, harvesting of silviculture products, packing, shipping, milling, and marketing of agricultural products conducted by the proprietor of the agricultural operation, or any other legal plant or animal production and all farm practices.

(3) “Committee” or “State Conservation Committee” means the agency created in §19-21A-4 of this code.

(4) “Conservation” means the reduction of soil erosion, enhancement of water supplies, control, and abatement of nonpoint sources of water pollution, improvement of water quality, increased aquatic and wildlife habitat, and the reduction of damages caused by floodwater and sediment damages and other natural disasters.

(5) “District” or “conservation district” means a subdivision of this state, organized in accordance with the provisions of this article, for the purposes, with the powers and subject to the restrictions hereinafter set forth.

(6) “Grant” means the providing of grants for conservation purposes pursuant to legislative rule.

(7) “Governing body” means the supervisors of any conservation district, town, or city, council, city commission, county court, or body acting in lieu of a county court, in this state, and the term “governmental division” means any conservation district, town, city, or county in this state.

(8) “Land occupier” or “occupier of land” means any person, firm, or corporation who shall hold title to, or shall be in possession of, any lands lying within a district organized under the provisions of this article, whether as owner, lessee, renter, or tenant.

(9) “Landowners” or “owners of land” means any person or persons, firm, or corporation who holds title to any lands lying within a district organized under the provisions of this article.

(10) “Notice” means notice published as a Class II legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of this code and the publication area for the publication is the county in which is located the appropriate area. At any hearing held pursuant to such notice at the time and place designated in the notice, adjournment may be made, from time to time, without the necessity of renewing the notice for the adjournment dates.

(11) “Petition” means a petition filed under the provisions of §19-21A-14 of this code for the creation of a district.

(12) “Soil conservation”, “erosion control”, or “erosion prevention projects” means those projects that have been established by federal agencies in cooperation with state agencies for the purpose of demonstrating soil erosion control and water conservation practices.

(13) “State” means the State of West Virginia.

(14) “Supervisor” means one of the members of the governing body of a district, elected or appointed in accordance with the provisions of this article.

(15) “Urban Agriculture” means the cultivation, processing, and distribution of agricultural products grown in urban and suburban settings, including vertical production, warehouse farms, community gardens, rooftop farms, hydroponic, aeroponic, and aquaponic facilities, and other innovations.

(16) “United States” or “agencies of the United States” means the United States of America, Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, and any other agency or instrumentality, corporate or otherwise, of the United States of America.

(17) “Works of improvement” means such structures as may be necessary or convenient for flood prevention or the conservation, development, utilization, or disposal of water.