The local citizen group Protect Fauquier and nonprofit organizations Citizens For Fauquier County (CFFC) and The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) are united against Amazon’s proposed data center project near Blackwell Road. The data center would sit at the northern gateway into Warrenton, along with a new Dominion electric substation, and would require miles of new high voltage transmission lines supported by 110-feet-tall steel towers, according to Dominion Energy.
PEC
Utility-Scale Solar
Over the past few years, the declining cost of solar panels, coupled with rising demand for green energy sources has spurred interest in the development of utility-scale solar facilities throughout Virginia. These facilities are often located in rural areas, consume numerous acres (many are well over 1000 acres) and are incorrectly referred to as solar farms. They have many of the same environmental benefits as rooftop solar. However, they more resemble light industrial sites and it is proving difficult at best to protect our natural, cultural, and historic resources from poorly sited facilities.
Montana Lanier Ruffner
Montana Lanier Ruffner joined The Piedmont Environmental Council as the Meeting & Events Manager in May 2022.
On the Ground Updates – June 2022
A series of short updates from around the PEC region – Albemarle & Charlottesville, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange & Rappahannock.
The Land That Sustains Us: PEC Celebrates 50 Years
On Saturday, May 21, PEC staff gathered together with more than 160 friends, family, and supporters on the gentle rolling slopes of a mostly-conserved Clark Mountain to celebrate PEC’s 50th year of protecting a special place: the Virginia Piedmont.
Summer 2022 Piedmont View
The summer 2022 edition of the Piedmont View features highlights from PEC’s 50th anniversary celebration, meet two PEC staff members, Madison County property condemnation records are digitized, climate risk assessment, upcoming events, and more.
Albemarle Climate Action Videos
The following video interviews with local residents and experts will introduce you to the #ClimateConversation happening in Albemarle and arm you with the knowledge you need to take action in your community.
PEC Calls on U.S. Senators To Stop Mountain Valley Pipeline
On Earth Day, The Piedmont Environmental Council joined 24 groups and 17 members of the General Assembly in a letter to U.S. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner unequivocally outlining the environmental and social justice impacts of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP).
PEC Signs Letter Asking National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board to Reduce Transportation Emissions, Sprawl
On May 1, PEC joined 34 other groups around Virginia, D.C. and Maryland in signing on to a joint letter from the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG) to make necessary and feasible changes to the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TBP)’s Visualize 2045 plan.
Documenting the Freetowns of the Southwest Mountains
PEC is working with community members in Albemarle County to research and document the history and associated historic resources of African American communities in and around the Southwest Mountains.