(By Rex Linville) My job with The Piedmont Environmental Council usually has me visiting farms and forests in Albemarle and Greene counties and advising landowners on conservation strategies for their property. But early this November, I found myself on Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C. offering public comment to the IRS about proposed regulations that would adversely impact land conservation in Virginia…
Maps & Resources
Protecting the Goose Creek Watershed
PEC was recently awarded a $15,600 grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment to further our work identifying and prioritizing opportunities to implement agricultural best management practices (BMPs) and strengthen efforts on land protected by conservation easements in the Goose Creek watershed.
On the Ground — Winter 2018
Updates from the around the PEC region, organized by county. Albemarle: Strengthening growth management in Albemarle. Clarke: Promoting and celebrating Conservation. Culpeper: A Finger on the Scale for Solar. Fauquier: Updated Plans, Remington Walks and Vint Hill’s Future. Greene: Greene at a crossroads. Loudoun: Choosing our future. Madison: Trout Stream Restoration Continues. Orange: Two Farms Conserved along the Rapidan River. Rappahannock: Community-wide Conservation Success!.
President’s Letter – Winter 2018
When PEC was created in 1972, the underlying motivation for many of the founders was to help the communities where they lived and the landscape they loved respond to massive forces of change. Thank you for continuing that work; we are proud to work with you and on your behalf.
Stream crossing projects aim to ease passage for fish, and people
The Piedmont Environmental Council and Virginia Department of Transportation are collaborating to reconnect brook trout habitat and improve flood resiliency and public road-stream crossings in the Virginia Piedmont.
Building Strong Rural and Urban Communities
Drawing over 150 attendees, PEC held their Annual Meeting on October 21 at historic Castle Hill Farm in Keswick. First Lady of Virginia Pamela Northam was in attendance and spoke about the importance of conserving lands in the state. Following the First Lady’s remarks, keynote speaker Charles Marohn, President and Founder of Strong Towns, delivered the keynote address.
Keynote Speaker to Discuss Benefits of Strong Towns at PEC’s Annual Meeting
The leader of an organization that educates American communities on the benefits of smart planning believes that desirable urban communities can play a role in promoting rural land conservation.
Award-Winning Farmer Protects Farmland for Future Generations
This past summer, in an effort to preserve the prime farmland and help ensure continued operations, the Nixons chose to permanently protect 382 acres of their land through a conservation easement with the Piedmont Environmental Council, Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District and USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Family Farm Preserved for Future Generations
This summer, in an effort to preserve the prime farmland and help ensure continued operations, the Nixons chose to permanently protect 382 acres of their land through a conservation easement with the Piedmont Environmental Council, Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District and USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Groups Release Safety and Traffic Solutions for Route 15 North of Leesburg
With the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors scheduled to vote on a first phase widening of Route 15 for 3.6 miles north of Leesburg, a coalition of smart growth, conservation and preservation groups and numerous local residents are pressing the Board to instead adopt an approach that is safer, cheaper and more effective.