Contact your legislators now and ask them to vote for legislation which will help guide Virginia in controlling the sale of invasive plants.
Land Conservation
PEC has helped landowners permanently protect over 357,000 acres of rural or natural land. Conservation Easements help ensure that the Virginia Piedmont is always characterized by its open spaces, healthy environment, and cultural resources.
Video: Wrapping up 2020 at the Community Farm
We had an incredible 2020 season at the Community Farm at Roundabout Meadows! Thanks to the tireless work of over 470 volunteers, we donated more than 25,000 pounds of fresh, locally grown produce to our partners at Loudoun Hunger Relief!
What was expected to be a slow and steady increase in production this year turned into something much more, as PEC worked to respond to the local impacts of Covid-19. We increased production by 4x what it was in 2019!
We need your support as we plan for the fast-approaching 2021 season. Make a donation today.
Read more about this season at the farm and the rest of PEC’s Farm to Food Pantry Initiatives
What Does 2021 Hold for Conservation?
The 2020 Special Session, focused on resolving budget issues stemming from Covid and addressing police and criminal justice reform, has ended just in time for the holidays. But as in the movie Groundhog Day, now we prepare to do it all over again. Virginia’s 2021 legislative session opens on Jan 13 and will prove no less challenging than the special session. At this moment, details are still fluid, but here is what we know.
Julian Scheer Fauquier Land Conservation Fund
The Piedmont Environmental Council’s Julian Scheer Fauquier Land Conservation Fund (the “Fauquier Fund”) is dedicated to protecting land with important natural, historic, scenic, and agricultural resources in Fauquier County, Virginia. An advisory committee, composed of local residents and PEC staff, helps identify potential projects and provide information to landowners about protecting their land.
Webinar: Keeping Land in the Family
Learn more about the new Heirs’ Property Act in Virginia and what it means for families who share ownership of land or have inherited land without a will.
Return of brook trout signals promise for trout stream restoration efforts
Find out about recent fish counts.
George Mason University students to survey Roundabout Meadows vegetation
George Mason University plant ecology students are helping The Piedmont Environmental Council measure the success of our wetlands restoration effort at Roundabout Meadows. With a grant from the Virginia Native Plant Society, the students are establishing a baseline dataset by collecting and identifying all plant species there.
Support Conservation Funding and Programs
Thank legislators for supporting VLCF funding and remind them of the importance of all of our state conservation programs in 2021.
Help shape Loudoun County’s vision for parks, recreation and open space
Hello there! We wanted to send a quick note letting you know that community input is needed on the Loudoun’s Parks & Recreation Master Plan.
Your feedback is critical to determining the vision, development, and investment in parks, recreation opportunities, open space and trails in Loudoun County for the next 10 years.
General Assembly Special Session Update
Beginning on Aug 18, the Virginia General Assembly entered a special session to focus on budget impacts related to the pandemic and calls for criminal justice and policing reforms as local and national unrest continued following the death of George Floyd. At the time of this writing, session is ongoing and many questions remain on the shape of the final budget and some of the legislative initiatives. Legislators intend to wrap up their work before the end of September.