Scenic Virginia launches call for nominations for Virginia’s Treasured Views. Participants will help build statewide inventory of Virginia’s scenic assets, giving communities, planners, and decision-makers the information to protect the places that matter most.
Press Center
Please address general press inquiries to Cindy Sabato at [email protected] or 540-347-2334 x7021 — or to the point of contact listed in a specific press release. You can also get in touch with PEC on twitter: @piedmontenviron.
PRESS RELEASE: Scenic Virginia Announces Inaugural Roundtable on Treasured Landscapes
Scenic Virginia is proud to announce its inaugural roundtable on preserving the commonwealth’s treasured landscapes, taking place Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at historic James Madison’s Montpelier.
Piedmont Environmental Council Response to Department of Environmental Quality Air Quality Report
he Piedmont Environmental Council recently commissioned a study, conducted by EmPower Analytics Group, evaluating the public health and economic impacts of Virginia’s first data center running on onsite power generation.
Conservation Easement Enables Farm To Remain in Family for Fourth Generation
Thanks to creativity, collaboration, and a conservation solution put together by The Piedmont Environmental Council and American Farmland Trust, 226 acres of a cattle farm operated by Dustin Watson in Greene County will remain in his family and be protected forever by a conservation easement.
Piedmont Environmental Council Statement on the Potomac River Being Named the Most Threatened River in America
This week, American Rivers released its 2026 list of most endangered rivers, and the Potomac River leads the list, due in large part to uncontrolled data center growth throughout the watershed.
The Piedmont Environmental Council Celebrates New Legislation Supporting Sustainable Energy
The Piedmont Environmental Council is delighted to announce that 12 solution-oriented energy bills that PEC either authored, informed, and advocated for have been adopted into Virginia law.
Virginia Piedmont Protects 5,552 Acres in 2025
In 2025, landowners and conservation organizations in The Piedmont Environmental Council’s nine-county region conserved over 4,178 acres through conservation easements. The Conservation Fund’s purchase of Oak Hill in Loudoun County and the Virginia Outdoors Foundation’s acquisition for the Bull Run Mountain Natural Areas Preserve added another 1,374 acres.
PEC statement on Prince William Digital Gateway latest legal win
The recent ruling by the Virginia Court of Appeals against the Prince William Digital Gateway, in favor of the citizen-backed lawsuits attempting to block it, is another example of the growing grassroots power of Virginians pushing back against uncontrolled data center development.
The Piedmont Environmental Council Awarded $11,000 Grant to Bring Agrivoltaics to Low-income Urban Communities
PEC has received an $11,000 grant from the Land Trust Alliance and Open Space Institute to help launch an initiative to develop agrivoltaics projects for urban and low-income communities. Agrivoltaics combines food production with on-site clean energy generation on the same plot of land.
The Piedmont Environmental Council to Host Annual Bluebell Walk
The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) will hold its 23rd Annual Bluebell Walk Sunday, March 29 from 1-3 p.m. along the banks of the Cedar Run at Bonny Brook Farm in Catlett, Virginia.