This year, we made a concerted effort to better inform the Culpeper community about local events. We have some good news to shhare with you about decisions that were only achieved through strong community engagement.
Data Centers
2024 Highlights: By the Numbers
PEC’s dedicated staff work relentlessly to advance land conservation, sound land use planning, the protection of natural resources and better climate and energy policy.
Commission Study Confirms that Energy Demand is Out of Control, Threatening The Community with Higher Costs and Impacts Across the State and Beyond
We applaud the commission’s work over the past year to assess the scope of economic, energy, and environmental impacts due to explosive data center growth. But their analysis of the impact on communities, the environment and the historic and cultural resources is insufficient, and their recommendations don’t match the severity of the impact.
Commentary: Dominion, data centers are fleecing ratepayers
PEC President, Chris Miller, recently wrote an op-ed in the Richmond Times-Dispatch about the energy “crisis by contract” created by Dominion Energy and the data center industry.
Video: Virginia’s Parks and Battlefields are at Risk
Virginia’s state and national parks, battlefields, and other historic and recreational sites are under threat from uncontrolled data center development. One notable example is Wilderness Battlefield, in Orange County, which was named one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in 2024 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Culpeper Updates: Opportunities to Protect Farmland and Uphold Data Center Noise Standards
Your action at both the Town and County levels can directly help keep Culpeper rural and protect residents in the Town from industrial noise pollution.
The Virginia SCC has forced Transparency Out of Dominion Energy
The State Corporation Commission required Dominion to supplement its Oct. 15, 2024, Integrated Resource Plan with modeling plans that meet the requirements of the Virginia Clean Economy Act and show scenarios without data center load. Dominion Energy has begrudgingly responded and the results are alarming, yet unsurprising.
More Shenanagins at Clevenger’s Corner
You may be familiar with the ongoing development at the corner of Route 229 and 211 known as Clevenger’s Corner. This 770+ house residential and commercial development was initially approved in 2005 and took almost 20 years just to break ground. Now, as the project is nearing completion, the developer is trying to change the rules to industrialize the land closest to Route 211.
Loudoun Considers Policy and Zoning Changes to Better Manage Data Center Development
We have a real opportunity to improve the process by which data centers are approved in Loudoun County and start to shift away from the unsustainable path we’ve been on. I encourage you to urge the Planning Commission to act quickly on the proposed plan for increasing oversight of data center development.
Dominion Energy Integrated Resource Plan projects historic rate increases for Virginia ratepayers while subsidizing the world’s wealthiest companies
The Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) filed by Dominion
Energy with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (“SCC”) this week projects a more than 100
percent increase in electricity usage in the next 15 years, primarily driven by the explosive and
uncontrolled growth of data centers.