Our Region

PEC focuses on nine counties and one city in the northern Piedmont of Virginia: Albemarle, Charlottesville, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange, and Rappahannock.

We also team with local organizations to promote thriving communities and healthy natural resources in a much larger region, including the Shenandoah Valley, the central Piedmont, and the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Corridor. In addition, we are proud to serve as fiscal sponsor of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, an organization that focuses on land use and policy in the greater Washington D.C. area.

Verling Park Concept Design

Verling Park Concept Design

Posted on by Bri West

In 2017, PEC was able to retain Land Planning & Design Associates to develop a concept design for a revamped Verling Park. The plan incorporated input from local residents in Gordonsville who want to see a more functional park that serves the whole community. We are currently working to enable the Town to bring the plan to reality.

Progress report: we were able to secure funds to help the town purchase 112 Linney Street to expand Verling Park (on Market Street, between Main and Baker) to an entire town block.

Loudoun HOA communities share and discover practical steps for healthier landscaping

Loudoun HOA communities share and discover practical steps for healthier landscaping

Posted on by Bri West

The second Homeowners Association (HOA) forum, “Common Space for the Greater Good,” was held on October 11, 2018 and attended by nearly 100 guests representing 33 HOA communities.

“Practical Steps for Healthier Landscapes” was the second installment of Loudoun HOA programs organized by The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) and partners. This forum was co-hosted by Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy (LWC), the Northern Virginia Partnership for Invasive Species Management (NoVA PRISM), and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries’ Habitat Partners© Program (VDGIF).

Award-Winning Farmer Protects Farmland for Future Generations

Award-Winning Farmer Protects Farmland for Future Generations

Posted on by Paula Combs

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.

Fauquier County Updating the Rural Lands Plan

Fauquier County Updating the Rural Lands Plan

Posted on by Julie Bolthouse

The Rural Lands Plan is a section of the Fauquier County Comprehensive Plan, and much as the name implies, it outlines land use policies and the desired future for the rural areas. This chapter is very important because over 90% of the County is planned to remain categorized as rural land. Although the majority of new growth is happening within the growth areas of the County (e.g. Warrenton, Bealeton, New Baltimore, etc.), about half of the nearly 70,000 residents of the county live in these rural areas. In addition, all residents of Fauquier are connected to the rural lands by locally grown goods, through tourism, and by simply driving through them.

A Ride to Surprise and Delight

A Ride to Surprise and Delight

Posted on by Peter Krebs

About two dozen cyclists gathered on the evening of June 21, garlanded their bikes with lights and reflective decorations, and set out for a relaxed four-mile celebration of the Summer Solstice. The route through Charlottesville followed a combination of quiet neighborhood streets and roads with bike lanes. The colorful and musical procession elicited reactions of surprise and delight.

Petition: Don’t Remove Disclosure Requirements For Fracking Chemicals

Petition: Don’t Remove Disclosure Requirements For Fracking Chemicals

Posted on by Bri West

I wanted to share a petition with you that is picking up steam across the state. It calls on the state’s Freedom of Information Advisory Council – a state agency responsible for resolving disputes related to the Freedom of Information Act – to keep disclosure requirements for fracking chemicals in place in Virginia. A subcommittee of the Advisory Council meets later this month to discuss the issue.