Interested in managing your property or backyard for wildlife, but not sure where to start? Our guide, Managing Land in the Piedmont of Virginia for the Benefit of Birds and Other Wildlife, introduces landowners to land management options that should be considered for a variety of habitat types.
Maps & Resources
PEC Donates Land to National Park Service
Shenandoah National Park just grew a little bigger and a little more beautiful. This past May, The Piedmont Environmental Council donated a 17.2-acre property it owned in Rappahannock County to the National Park Service. A forested and vacant parcel on a mountain slope south of Sperryville, VA, the land is within the legislative boundary of Shenandoah National Park.
Fenced in at Roundabout Meadows
Polluted water is not only bad for us and the environment, but it’s bad for livestock as well,” says Celia Vuocolo, habitat and stewardship specialist at PEC.
A significant stewardship project is wrapping up this fall at Roundabout Meadows, the 141- acre property near Gilbert’s Corner that was gifted to PEC in 2013. The project is focused on implementing agricultural Best Management Practices (BMPs) that will keep livestock away from the property’s streams and provide a clean source of water for cattle. As part of the effort, over 2 miles of fencing and almost a mile of pipeline plumbing for a watering system have been installed.
“Our long-term plan for Roundabout Meadows is to retain its agricultural use, and we want to do so in a manner that is in harmony with being good stewards of the land and water resources, while farming continues on the property,” says Michael Kane, director of conservation at PEC.
Preserving History at Jack’s Shop and James City
PEC received a grant of $35,300 from the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program to research the history of two previously undocumented Civil War battles that occurred at Jack’s Shop and James City in Madison County, Va.
A small town with a lot to offer
Creating a community park takes quite a bit of planning, which is why the historic railroad town of Remington is about to receive support for adding recreational space for its residents and visitors.
Situated on a scenic natural crossing of the Rappahannock River, Remington has an abundance of character and contains elements of a walkable community, including a compact street grid. But the town has few common areas for recreation and no official public access to the river.
PEC Donates Land to National Park
Shenandoah National Park just grew a little bigger and a little more beautiful. This past May, We donated a 17.2-acre property of ours in Rappahannock County to the National Park Service. A forested and vacant parcel on a mountain slope south of Sperryville, Virginia, the land is within the legislative boundary of Shenandoah National Park.
“The property is surrounded by the park on three of its four sides, so it’s a key puzzle piece,” says Carolyn Sedgwick, PEC’s Rappahannock County land conservation officer, who oversaw the donation from PEC to the National Park Service. “This great public-private partnership with the National Park Service has resulted in the expansion of one of the most important wildlife corridors on the east coast.”
The donated acreage is by an area in the national park designated as federal wilderness — the highest conservation designation for federal land — making it an important and strategic area to conserve.
Happy Anniversary PEC Fellowship!
Boasting 116 alumni since its inception, the seven-week Fellowship Program has helped future environmental leaders gain hands-on experience in a unique mix of topics such as land conservation, land use, sustainable agriculture, energy policy, habitat stewardship, historic preservation, transportation planning and geographic information systems (GIS) with experienced professionals.
We receive applicants from all over the country. Through a selective process, twelve college students are chosen to participate in the summer Program.
The Culture of Collards
Collard greens are more than a simple side dish. Michael Twitty shares the African-American cultural history of this leafy green. Gail Taylor a grower with Three Part Harmony Farm, honors her ancestors and nourishes her community by cultivating this nutritious vegetable. Rebecca Lemos-Otero and Lola Bloom of City Blossoms teach youth to get their hands dirty by growing delicious collard greens from seeds.
The Culture of Collards from Aditi Desai on Vimeo.
50 Years of Farming: For Love & Vegetables
Tony Newcomb dreamed of farming and his partner Hiu followed him from Ohio to northern Virginia to rent land and start a farm. With Tony’s passing in 1984, Hiu continues to sow the seeds of their collective dream into its fifth decade at Potomac Vegetable Farms with her daughter Hana Newcomb and friend Ellen Polishuk.
50 Years of Farming: For Love & Vegetables from Aditi Desai on Vimeo.
Farming for the Future
What do you do when the next generation does not want to take over the family farm? How do you keep that land in production? These are the questions at the heart of Cliff Miller’s journey to find stewards to care for the land he loves. He finds those persons in Mike and Molly Peterson of Heritage Hollow Farms and Rachel Bynum and Eric Plaksin of Waterpenny Farm.
Farming for the Future from Aditi Desai on Vimeo.