The Piedmont News is an email digest of top news stories about conservation, land use, energy, and environmental matters of interest to the region. We hope you’ll share The Piedmont News with someone else who cares about these stories.
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Politico
(August 6, 2026)
Virginia regulators have ordered Dominion Energy, the commonwealth’s largest utility, to create a process for assigning to data centers the direct costs of their electric service, such as substations built to meet their power demand. Those costs are currently spread across all ratepayers. Regulators also opened the door for data centers to pay more of the grid’s transmission costs further upstream, such as regional projects that are harder to tie to any specific demand source.
Virginia Mercury
(August 5, 2026)
“The decision establishes an important precedent: Virginia families and small businesses should not subsidize transmission infrastructure built solely to connect new large-load data centers,” said Chris Miller, president of The Piedmont Environmental Council, one of the intervening parties in the case.
This article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council President Chris Miller.
Fauquier Times
(August 5, 2026)
Water use has emerged as a new front in the battle over data center development. Collectively, data centers use over 2 billion gallons of water a year in Virginia. Critics complain that tech companies and developers have entered into secret agreements with municipalities and water authorities to divert massive amounts of water to data centers.
Virginia Mercury
(August 4, 2026)
Among the many environmental, energy and economic concerns about the unconstrained spread of data centers in Virginia, the impact on drinking water supplies has ranked fairly low. That changed suddenly last week, with the release of a report that the administration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger seems to have tried to suppress.
Canary Media
(August 3, 2026)
As the world’s data center capital, Virginia faces a surge in energy demand that could spike power costs and lead to more polluting fossil fuel plants. At the same time, the state is seeing its farmland disappear at one of the fastest rates in the United States. The two problems may seem unrelated, but Old Dominion leaders believe they could be mitigated by a common solution.
Fauquier Times
(August 3, 2026)
The Woodbridge Democrat sent a letter to the Virginia State Corporation Commission, which regulates public utilities, listing his concerns over what he called a “backroom deal” and imploring the agency “to do everything in your power to block this merger.”
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(August 2, 2026)
In July, three events transpired in Northern Virginia that should serve as clear warnings about the impact these diesel generators have on our air quality — and why state regulators, including DEQ, need to pause data center approvals and permits to ensure public health is protected.
This op-ed was authored by Piedmont Environmental Council Director of Land Use Julie Bolthouse.
NBC Washington
(August 1, 2026)
The calls to stop data center growth in the data center capital of the world are getting louder as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle get behind calls for a statewide moratorium. Some lawmakers said Virginia has to stop approving new data centers altogether until the impacts on water, electricity and other issues are figured out first.
DC News Now
(July 31, 2026)
Sen. Glen Sturtevant (R-Colonial Heights) wants to hit the pause button on the approval and development of data centers in Virginia. Virginia is the data center capital of the world, as it has the highest concentration of these high-tech developments globally.
National Association of Home Builders
(August 1, 2026)
At a January 2026 state hearing, Andrew Clark, a lobbyist for the Home Builders Association of Virginia, said data centers are “outbidding residential developers” in much of Northern Virginia. Local governments are no longer just deciding where to put data centers. They are deciding whether residential development can compete for land and grid capacity at all.
WTVR
(July 31, 2026)
Dominion Energy said tariffs on steel and aluminum, created by President Donald Trump, have added hundreds of millions to the price tag on the company’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, also known as CVOW. The news comes as Dominion also announced a delay in completion for CVOW, though it's already generating power.
Reuters
(July 31, 2026)
Dominion Energy, opens new tab, the U.S. electric utility covering the world's biggest data center territory, reported better-than-expected second-quarter profit and revenue on Friday as demand from server warehouses grew beyond 50 gigawatts and offset rising operating expenses.
Information Charlottesville
(August 6, 2026)
On July 21, 2026, representatives from the Monticello Wine Trail appeared before the Albemarle Economic Development Authority to ask for $20,000 to hire pruning experts Simonit & Sirch to teach staff at area wineries what to do to repair vines at a three-day intensive workshop to be held this December.
Information Charlottesville
(August 6, 2026)
On August 1, 2026, Albemarle County’s Office of Housing took out a public notice in the Charlottesville Daily Progress announcing the opening of waiting lists on August 17 for vouchers for various affordable housing sites.
The Winchester Star
(August 7, 2026)
The 71st Annual Clarke County Fair will kick off Sunday, Aug. 9, at the fairgrounds on West Main Street, and continue through Aug. 15. While designed to showcase agricultural activities in the county, the event includes carnival rides, food stands, music performances and other attractions of interest to the general public.
Data Center Dynamics
(August 5, 2026)
Traditionally not a large data center market, Culpeper County, located to the southwest of data center hotspot Loudoun County, has attracted a number of prospective developers. Amazon, EdgeCore, and DataBank are planning large-scale data center projects in the county.
This article mentions The Piedmont Environmental Council.
Lancaster Farming
(August 5, 2026)
Sometimes you’ve got to buy the fixer-upper. That’s what Zachary Gihorski and Victoria Kemp found after a multiyear, multistate search for a farm that met their needs. And, oh, did the farm they bought in Culpeper two years ago require some work. With help from several cost-share programs, the married couple have quickly tightened up management of the cows and forages. Calving, previously year-round, they’ll accomplish this year in 60 days.
Culpeper Star-Exponent
(August 5, 2026)
By the end of this year, our goal is to quadruple our production space, nearly triple our cold and dry storage, add classroom and office space, and create a USDA-inspected processing area that will help farmers, food businesses, and institutions work together in entirely new ways.
Fauquier Now
(August 3, 2026)
A Fauquier County Circuit Court judge Thursday dealt a blow to Citizens for Fauquier County’s efforts to stop development of the planned Amazon data center in Warrenton.
This story uses a photo by Piedmont Environmental Council photographer Hugh Kenny.
Loudoun Now
(August 5, 2026)
A new report released by Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy says there are high levels of salt pollution in Loudoun County streams, especially in eastern Loudoun and Leesburg.
Loudoun Times-Mirror
(August 5, 2026)
Community members attended a gathering at Flying Ace Farm brewery and distillery in Lovettsville on July 30 following last month’s open house on the Valley North Transmission Line Project, which drew crowds of upset neighbors from the Lovettsville and Taylorstown areas.
Blue Ridge Leader
(August 5, 2026)
In a July 15 Loudoun County Board of Supervisors public hearing, supervisors voted 7-1-1 to postpone action until Sept. 1, giving Dominion additional time to explore whether additional architectural and landscaping improvements can be made before construction begins.
WTOP News
(August 4, 2026)
Amazon has filed an application to transform George Washington University’s campus in Loudoun County, Virginia, into new data centers, a proposal that’s drawn pushback from residents and an elected official. Supervisor Juli Briskman, whose district includes the project site, said in a lengthy social media statement that the plan calls for 800,000 square feet of data center space.
GW Hatchet
(August 3, 2026)
Amazon filed an initial application to build four new data center buildings totaling over 800,000 square feet on GW’s Virginia Science and Technology Campus last week. District Supervisor Juli Briskman, who represents the Algonkian District that the campus is housed in, said in a statement released by her office that she will “fight” the proposal “every step of the way.”
WUSA 9
(July 30, 2026)
Gandhi's home sits in the Regency, a subdivision of 143 houses off Waxpool Road flanked on two sides by data centers, in the heart of Loudoun County's Data Center Alley — the largest concentration of data centers in the world. When he bought the house, he had no idea what was coming.
Rappahannock News
(August 6, 2026)
Rappahannock County has been added to the list of Virginia localities designated as primary drought disaster areas by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, making local farmers eligible to apply for federal emergency assistance.
Rappahannock News
(August 6, 2026)
The move on Monday follows last month’s board meeting, where representatives from FirstEnergy and Rappahannock Electric Cooperative answered questions from residents about the proposed 138-kilovolt transmission line. Since then, county staff has created a dedicated webpage summarizing information about the project and addressing frequently asked questions raised by the public.
Rappahannock News
(August 6, 2026)
Residents can learn how a former landfill is being transformed into wildlife habitat during a Making Trash Bloom presentation at 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 29, at Copper Fox Distillery in Sperryville. The Rappahannock County Recreational Facilities Authority will hold its third dark sky event of the year on Saturday, Aug. 8 at 8:15 p.m. at the Rappahannock County Park pavilion.
The Piedmont Journal Recorder
(August 4, 2026)
Rappahannock County supervisors voted 4-1 Monday night to let a Washington tourist home keep operating through one future sale, carving out a one-time exception after a lengthy debate over precedent, fairness, and housing policy. The decision clears the way for Guilder Frontier LLC’s property at 472 Main Street, known as Mint Cottage, to transfer to a new owner without losing its tourist-home approval.
The Winchester Star
(August 6, 2026)
At a joint regional meeting Wednesday, Frederick County officials provided representatives from the City of Winchester and Clarke County with updates regarding ongoing data center matters and its plan to fight the proposed Valley North transmission line project.
ALX Now
(August 5, 2026)
Alexandria City Council has joined a growing number of local residents asking Fairfax County to deny a substation associated with data center development just outside city limits.
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star
(August 4, 2026)
Northern Virginia and Richmond lead the way in approved and planned data centers across the Commonwealth.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(August 4, 2026)
The operator for the electric grid serving Richmond and much of Virginia says the region is on track to come up thousands of megawatts short of the electricity it expects to need within the next two to three years.
Fauquier Now
(August 4, 2026)
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality released its 117-page legislative report on the state’s groundwater supply east of Interstate 95 this week, which revealed significant levels of strain on the eastern aquifers that could put clean drinking water at risk.
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star
(August 2, 2026)
Dozens of people turned out Wednesday evening for a forum on data center development in the Fredericksburg area. They heard about the pros and cons of the facilities that power the internet.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(August 1, 2026)
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality opted to maintain its months-long drought warning advisory for the Richmond area this week. Meanwhile, the U.S. Drought Monitor indicates conditions in the region are improving.
Inside Climate News
(July 31, 2026)
A company wants to mine almost 2,500 square miles of the seafloor, an area larger than Delaware, between three and 64 miles east of the Delmarva Peninsula.
Fox5DC
(July 28, 2026)
Pushback against new data center development is growing across the D.C. region, with the latest unfolding in Alexandria, Virginia, and Montgomery County, Maryland.
Virginia Mercury
(August 7, 2026)
One of the less noticed features of the Virginia Way is the long-running tendency of the commonwealth’s leaders to conduct their decision-making behind closed doors. In this feature, we aim to highlight the frequency with which officials around Virginia are resisting public access to records on issues large and small — and note instances when the release of information under FOIA gave the public insight into how government bodies are operating.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(August 6, 2026)
The commonwealth now has a separate large-load rate class, a temporary electricity-consumption tax, and a governor pressing regulators to assign transmission expenses directly to the facilities that trigger them. Yet Virginia’s next challenge concerns implementation. Promises to protect households will carry little weight unless regulators translate them into durable, measurable obligations.
Virginia Mercury
(August 6, 2026)
Gov. Abigail Spanberger is stepping directly into the regulatory fight over the proposed $67 billion sale of Dominion Energy to Florida-based NextEra Energy, becoming the first Virginia governor to formally intervene in a case before the State Corporation Commission.
Loudoun Now
(August 6, 2026)
Sen. Russet Perry (D-31) and Del. John McAuliff (D-30) are asking to extend public comment timelines for two significant cases that will be appear before the State Corporation Commission—a merger request between Dominion and NextEra energy companies and a 260-mile, tri-state transmission line that is planned to cross through Loudoun.
Virginia Mercury
(August 6, 2026)
The regional board overseeing menhaden management along the Atlantic coast on Wednesday advanced a measure to implement new restrictions on Virginia’s only reduction fishery that harvests the oily forage fish within the Chesapeake Bay.
WUSA 9
(August 5, 2026)
The commonwealth's State Corporation Commission decided Wednesday that the billions of dollars being spent to build power lines to serve data centers in northern Virginia will not fall on ratepayers.
The story mentions The Piedmont Environmental Council.
The Virginian-Pilot
(August 5, 2026)
Federal officials are considering the area as the trial location to lease land for seabed mining in the Atlantic Ocean. Environmental experts, including from the reserve, are sounding the alarm out of concern for water quality and ecosystems they believe would be under threat from such development.
Washington Times
(August 5, 2026)
Virginia lawmakers are weighing tougher restrictions on the state’s data center industry as residents voice growing frustration over noise, rising utility bills and other quality-of-life concerns.
Washington Times
(August 5, 2026)
More restrictive legislation could soon curb Virginia’s data center boom, as residents push back on increased noise and utility bills.
In the Virginia General Assembly, Republican state Sen. Glen Sturtevant and Democratic Senate President Pro Tem L. Louise Lucas recently called on Gov. Abigail Spanberger to end the commonwealth’s $1.6 billion annual data center sales tax exemption.
Loudoun Times-Mirror
(August 5, 2026)
Six days after State Sen. Russet Perry, D-Loudoun, urged a special General Assembly session on groundwater issues, she called for another one.
This time, Perry wants the General Assembly to extend the State Corporation Commission's review deadline for the merger between NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy.
WDBJ
(August 4, 2026)
While data center controversies have long focused on noise and water usage near residential neighborhoods, local wildlife experts are stepping in with an urgent warning about the delicate species at risk in Southwest Virginia. Among the species most vulnerable to this industrial expansion is the Eastern Box Turtle, which has been listed as a threatened species in Virginia since 2021.
Politico
(August 4, 2026)
Virginia lawmakers defending their House seats this fall face growing pressure to weigh in on the growth of data centers in a state with the highest concentration of them. Concerns over energy affordability and water resources are mounting, and House candidates in Virginia who once punted the issue to state governments and localities are being asked to take a clear stance on how to control their costs and environmental impact.
Cardinal News
(August 4, 2026)
The late country singer David Allan Coe once recorded a song about a train wreck in Tennessee in 1918. “The Great Nashville Railroad Disaster” tells the true story of a routing mishap that feels a lot like Virginia politics right now, except with more trains and more tracks, but all converging on the same place, which for our purposes is Capitol Square.
The Daily Progress
(August 3, 2026)
Despite limited research to back up its claims, a nonprofit says Dominion Energy's Valley Link transmission line project will produce harmful radiation.
The Piedmont Journal Recorder
(August 3, 2026)
A documentary about Shenandoah National Park does not shy away from the park’s hardest truth: its creation came at a steep human cost.
ABC 13 News
(August 2, 2026)
A Virginia state senator is calling for an immediate statewide moratorium on new data center approvals, saying the commonwealth needs to evaluate whether its infrastructure can support continued growth.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(August 1, 2026)
After nearly five hours of meetings on July 28, James City County Supervisor Ruth Larson asked one final question about Virginia’s newly released groundwater study. The next three minutes exposed a problem much larger than James City County.
The Cool Down
(August 1, 2026)
Ten years later, Virginia regulators are yet again grappling with a question that could directly affect household budgets: If data centers require costly new power lines, who should pay the bill?
In a state where data-center growth is booming, the answer could shape electricity costs for decades.
The Daily Progress
(August 1, 2026)
Booming demand for electricity meant Dominion Energy’s Virginia utility revenue rose 30.5% in the first half of the year, but the price it paid for the fuel and imported electricity to supply customers rose twice as fast, the company’s latest financial report shows.
Politico
(July 31, 2026)
Dominion said the amount of data center load that had signed contracts for service has grown 5.3 gigawatts since December 2025, bringing its total pipeline of potential data center customers to 53.8 GW. Those are enormous figures for a utility with an all-time peak for electricity consumption of 25 GW. Company executives also said Dominion had recorded nine of its top 10 days for power consumption this year, with eight of those coming in the last two months alone.
Gadget Review
(July 23, 2026)
Virginia scores a perfect 100 as 283 data center projects threaten 79 endangered species, prompting states to rethink siting rules.
WVTF
(July 22, 2026)
Virginia’s most rare plant, the Peters Mountain Mallow, only lives on one mountainside in the world in the New River Valley along the West Virginia line. And the ongoing drought means protecting it from extinction is getting tougher.
Fortune
(August 14, 2026)
I have studied the programs states have launched to address the needs of these large electricity customers. Prices are set by state utility commissions, who determine which customers’ rates will increase by how much to pay for new investments in electricity infrastructure. It’s not simple.
Bloomberg
(August 6, 2026)
Rapid swings in AI data centers' power demands are straining vital equipment, causing batteries, generators and cooling systems to malfunction or wear out far sooner than expected. The problems are also a potential source of wider instability in power grids that are already straining to keep the lights on.
Notus
(August 6, 2026)
The residents of Boulder City, Nevada, are raging mad at the federal government.
The Trump administration unilaterally approved a data center on a tract of public land within the city’s jurisdiction this summer without giving residents a say in the matter and without conducting an environmental assessment specific to the project.
Politico
(August 3, 2026)
New data centers in Texas have been put on hold in a striking reversal by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who is up for reelection in November. Abbott on Monday directed the state’s power regulators and main grid managers to audit data centers seeking to connect to the Texas grid, saying no more additional data centers can be approved or move forward until that process is over.
Texas Tribune
(July 9, 2026)
Texas regulators are allowing AI data centers across the state to start up thousands of new pollution sources with no public notice or environmental reviews. And despite lofty promises to fuel data centers with renewable energy, data shows AI companies are mostly relying on gas to satisfy their insatiable energy demands.
