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.
Cardinal News
(July 15, 2026)
Unfortunately, Virginia's compromise budget didn’t eliminate the $2 billion subsidy for the largest, wealthiest tech companies in the world, or recoup the billions in future lost tax revenue for Virginia. Instead, it enacts an “electricity consumption tax” on data centers that amounts to just less than one-third of the revenue lost from data center tax exemption.
This editorial was written by Piedmont Environmental Council President Chris Miller.
Prince William Times
(July 15, 2026)
For years, the number of data centers asking for connection dates from Dominion Energy had been a secret. But there were hints of trouble.
The article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council director of land use Julie Bolthouse.
The New York Times
(July 14, 2026)
PJM, the nation’s largest electrical grid operator, on Tuesday released results of an electricity auction that would add $6.3 billion in costs to the bills of millions of households and businesses within the next three years, an increase driven by the power demands of data centers.
Reuters
(July 14, 2026)
New York became the first U.S. state on Tuesday to halt construction of large new data centers, imposing a one-year moratorium as concerns grow that the facilities driving the artificial-intelligence boom are raising power costs, straining water supplies and burdening local communities.
Inside Climate News
(July 13, 2026)
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, through a filing submitted by her newly appointed chief energy officer, is urging regulators at the State Corporation Commission to assign costs of transmission projects driven by data center needs to those facilities. In a brief interview, Michael Barber, senior energy infrastructure policy analyst at the Piedmont Environmental Council, said Spanberger’s involvement is “powerful.”
This article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council Senior Energy Policy Analyst Michael Barber.
Washington Examiner
(June 20, 2026)
“Data centers will employ very few permanent jobs for a sizable tax giveaway,” Lucas said Tuesday. “This is imperative to encourage responsible growth in the commonwealth to protect our electric grid and natural resources, while also ensuring hardworking Virginians are not asked to pick up higher utility costs to fund a higher share of our existing core services.”
This article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council President Chris Miller.
Fauquier Now
(July 17, 2026)
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments has issued a Code Purple air day in the metropolitan Washington region Friday due to drifting smoke from Canadian wildfires.
C-VILLE Weekly
(July 15, 2026)
Got milk? Virginia does. From minute milk exosomes that deliver drugs and beauty to high-tech breastfeeding devices, infant milk sharing apps, and dairy in its raw form, a look at a few of the ways the white stuff helps our region rise to the top like—well, you know.
C-VILLE Weekly
(July 15, 2026)
Crews with Stanley Martin Homes are preparing to build about four dozen single-family houses in the Fry’s Spring neighborhood on land currently covered by a forest. The first step in the Azalea Springs project is to remove mature trees that nearby residents say are critical to the city’s environmental health.
Information Charlottesville
(July 14, 2026)
Albemarle County and Charlottesville approved a Community Water Supply plan in early 2012 that called for construction of a new dam at Ragged Mountain Reservoir, an increase in that waterway’s volume, and construction of a pipeline to connect it with the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir.
Information Charlottesville
(July 14, 2026)
In January, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors approved a request from Elemental Ecotech to fill in the floodplain to be able to construct a building on a 7 acre parcel of land on Franklin Street. At the time, the developer did not have a specific site plan in mind but Meridian Civil Survey has has submitted one on their behalf for four two-story light industrial buildings in a project titled Woolen Mills Light Industrial Park Phase 3.
The Crozet Gazette
(July 3, 2026)
The third proposed revision was not a charm for the Windy Knoll project, an 18-unit infill development on three acres off Rt. 250 behind Cory Farm and near Liberty Hall. Most of the commissioners took issue with the project not on sheer density or affordable housing grounds, but rather on more subtle issues that will affect current residents such as layout and execution.
The Winchester Star
(July 15, 2026)
Berryville has joined the fight against the Valley North electrical transmission line proposed to run through Clarke County. In a unanimous vote Tuesday night, the Town Council adopted a resolution formally opposing the project.
The Winchester Star
(July 10, 2026)
The Clarke County Planning Commission voted unanimously Friday to recommend approval of a special-use permit to establish a noncommercial community services facility in White Post. Commissioners spent several months deliberating the permit request.
The Winchester Star
(July 7, 2026)
The developers of a 134-home subdivision proposed for northeast Berryville maintain they've addressed concerns the public has voiced about the Battletown Run project.
WJLA-ABC7News
(July 14, 2026)
Several residents have shown up to meetings urging the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors to maintain the county’s rural character and say no to data centers and the substations and the transmission lines that come with them. But data centers are already setting up shop in the county and some local leaders are pushing back against residents’ concerns.
Fauquier Now
(July 17, 2026)
The Fauquier Planning Commission Thursday recommended denial of the proposed Gigaland data center project in Remington, the second time the commission has done so in the last 13 months.
Fauquier Times
(July 15, 2026)
The heavy clay soil at the site of the proposed Gigaland data centers, which could pose problems for construction, is among concerns raised in a Fauquier County staff report released ahead of Thursday's planning commission meeting on the project.
This article mentions The Piedmont Environmental Council.
Fauquier Now
(July 15, 2026)
The Warrenton Town Council Tuesday voted to make the approval process easier for small hotels, inns, Airbnbs and other rentals, a move that further greases the wheels for a boutique hotel at the Warren Green Building.
Fauquier Now
(July 13, 2026)
The Fauquier County Board of Supervisors Thursday shot down a proposed housing development on Oak Shade Road in Bealeton that would have built 42 detached single-family homes largely on agricultural land.
Fauquier Times
(July 12, 2026)
A new exhibit at the Fauquier History Museum at the Old Jail, created by the Virginia Museum of History and Culture in Richmond and the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, highlight important events and battles of the American Revolution with a particular focus on how everyday Virginia and Fauquier County residents were affected.
Loudoun Now
(July 16, 2026)
Loudoun is home to thousands of diesel generators used to provide support to the county’s hundreds of data centers. Typically, they run rarely, and far less than their air quality permits allow, but this week Dominion Energy representatives said the early July heat wave nearly prompted the need for all of them to be brought online.
Middleburg Life
(July 16, 2026)
For a century, the Orland E. White Research Arboretum in Boyce has unlocked the mysteries of the forest and been a tremendous asset in public education.
Loudoun Now
(July 15, 2026)
Part of the explosive growth of data centers in Loudoun County can be traced back to a 26-year-old zoning determination that in effect authorized the widespread construction of the then-new category of development.
Loudoun Now
(July 15, 2026)
Efforts to block new transmission lines on school property are likely to be unsuccessful, Loudoun County Attorney Leo Rogers told Loudoun County Public Schools Division Counsel Wesley Allen in emails obtained by Loudoun Now. Rogers said in the letter that the State Corporation Commission has the authority to allow Dominion Energy to condemn land owned by LCPS.
Loudoun Now
(July 15, 2026)
In a new filing, Loudoun’s School Board has laid out its objections to the State Corporation Commission decision authorizing a transmission line to be built along school-owned property.
WUSA 9
(July 14, 2026)
The Loudoun County School Board voted Monday night to seek clarification from the Virginia State Corporation Commission on its approval of a route for the proposed Golden to Mars transmission line project, a decision that could affect school-owned property in the county.
Business Insider
(July 11, 2026)
Over the July 4 weekend, diesel generators at a Digital Realty data center switched on as temperatures spiked. Dark smoke floated above ACC9, one of dozens of data centers clustered in Ashburn and nearby cities, according to a video and photos from July 3 seen by Business Insider.
Loudoun Now
(July 10, 2026)
The Loudoun County Planning Commission on Thursday recommended approval of the Golden electrical substation, but members weren’t happy about it. Located near the intersection of Rt. 28 and the W&OD trail, the substation is part of a major expansion of the regional electrical grid.
Loudoun Now
(July 9, 2026)
A consultant team hired by the county government is collecting public input on problems Lucketts-area residents face on their rural roads when traffic grinds to a halt on Rt. 15. A meeting last Wednesday at Smarts Mill Middle School was a public kick-off for the year-long $300,000 study.
The Rapidan Register
(July 13, 2026)
Residents are still voicing concerns and asking questions about Orange County’s technology zoning district months after it was approved.
The Piedmont Journal Recorder
(July 10, 2026)
Rappahannock County Board of Supervisors filled two closely watched board seats Monday, choosing Olivia Noble for the county’s water and sewer authority and reappointing Thomas Atkins to the planning commission, while also warning that three recreation facility authority board vacancies remain unfilled.
Fauquier Now
(July 16, 2026)
The Prince William Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution effectively eliminating the “blue” and “light blue” routes for Dominion Energy’s pending Nokesville to Bristow transmission line across county property.
Fairfax Now
(July 14, 2026)
The Commonwealth of Virginia is putting some money behind plans to add a visitor center at the heart of the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail.
Rappahannock News
(July 16, 2026)
Shenandoah National Park is advising visitors that unhealthy air quality is expected across the park and surrounding areas as smoke from wildfires in Canada drifts into Virginia.
Winchester Gazette
(July 10, 2026)
The Frederick County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Wednesday to direct staff to begin preparing an ordinance amendment that would remove data centers as an allowed use in all of the county’s zoning districts.
Inside Climate News
(July 17, 2026)
What started as a promising pitch in February to fix the Virginians' concerns by linking environmental protections to the tax exemption ultimately went nowhere. Virginia lawmakers balked and created a new tax instead.
Virginia Mercury
(July 16, 2026)
Dominion Energy on Wednesday submitted their official arguments to the State Corporation Commission to allow the utility to merge with the Florida-based NextEra. The utilities plan to combine, creating an East Coast energy titan.
Farmville Herald
(July 16, 2026)
With funding through a Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission grant, Central Virginia Land Conservancy is offering qualifying landowners grants of up to $10,000 to help offset the cost of professional services — legal and appraisal fees — necessary for completing a conservation easement.
Augusta Free Press
(July 16, 2026)
NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy have formally filed applications seeking regulatory approval of their proposed $66.8 billion merger with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, starting the clock – and it’s a quick one – on the state review.
This article quotes Chris Miller, president of The Piedmont Environmental Council.
VCU News
(July 15, 2026)
Nearly half of registered voters in Virginia (47%) believe the commonwealth is headed in the wrong direction, and a significant majority (72%) oppose a sales tax exemption for data centers, according to the Summer 2026 Commonwealth Poll conducted by the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.
WUSA 9
(July 15, 2026)
A hearing that began Tuesday before Virginia's State Corporation Commission could change what every Dominion Energy customer in the state pays for electricity — and decide who foots the bill for billions of dollars in new power lines being built to serve Northern Virginia's booming data center industry.
This story includes an interview with Piedmont Environmental Council Land Use Director Julie Bolthouse.
The Virginian-Pilot
(July 15, 2026)
Dominion Energy announced Wednesday afternoon that it had filed paperwork with the State Corporation Commission to begin its proposed merger with Florida-based NextEra.
Virginia Mercury
(July 15, 2026)
Consumer advocates have joined Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s administration to argue that high-load customers like data centers should pay for the high-voltage lines that solely serve them, a stance now playing out as part of Dominion Energy’s case with state regulators to determine how power line costs should impact customers’ utility rates.
WVTF
(July 15, 2026)
Under Virginia law, anyone who pays an electric bill helps to cover the cost of transmission lines, but lately so many of those lines are for data centers that some people are demanding a change.
The article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council Senior Energy Infrastructure Policy Analyst Michael Barber.
The Daily Progress
(July 15, 2026)
The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank announced today that CEO Kari Diener has been appointed to the Virginia Commission to End Hunger, a statewide body convened by the legislative branch and dedicated to advancing coordinated, sustainable solutions to eliminate hunger across the Commonwealth.
Cardinal News
(July 15, 2026)
Apart from the new fees, the department is looking for feedback on a number of new regulations for hunting, fishing and trapping — dictating what participants can and cannot do. Many of them seek to protect endangered species and stop the spread of invasive species.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(July 15, 2026)
A filing from Virginia’s new chief energy officer says a monthly surcharge proposal by Dominion Energy would shift the costs for high-voltage transmission lines and equipment from data centers to residential customers. Dominion says it needs the surcharge to cover some $998 million for transmission lines and equipment projects.
Byrd Street
(July 14, 2026)
Largely driven by the result of the exponential growth of the data center industry and the energy they require, this new transmission line would be the largest ever constructed by Dominion. Eleven historic districts and several battlefields may be affected. The demand for additional land and electric power by data centers continues to impact conserved viewsheds and historic districts throughout Virginia.
This article mentions The Piedmont Environmental Council.
WHRO
(July 14, 2026)
For Virginia to comply with a bold, electric-grid-enhancing law mandating a gigantic increase in energy storage resources by 2045, utilities and developers must get cracking. And it’s equally essential, clean power proponents say, that local governments temper neighborhood revolts such as the one that erupted last month at the Chesapeake Planning Commission.
Virginia Mercury
(July 13, 2026)
After weeks of battle, the Democratic governor of Virginia and Democratic House and Senate leaders in Virginia’s General Assembly finally agreed on a budget. In lieu of clean energy requirements, legislators adopted a couple of softball provisions on noise and water use. Virginia leaders declared victory and went home happy. The same cannot be said of the industry’s opponents.
Virginia Mercury
(July 13, 2026)
On Monday, Gov. Abigail Spanberger announced that Virginia is partnering with the nonprofit Switch Together to help bring down the cost of solar array purchases for homeowners who want to install them on their homes. The governor framed the move as a way to help Virginians lower their utility bills.
Cardinal News
(July 13, 2026)
Local governments are moving to enact restrictions. As a matter of government policy, the state government has now signaled a less welcoming attitude toward data centers — and many local governments are joining suit. And yet … at the same time, that same state budget encourages the development and adoption of artificial intelligence, which requires data centers. So which is it? Are we for them or are we against them? The answer is not as simple as the question...
WTVR
(July 11, 2026)
Dozens of concerned Virginians rallied at the Capitol Bell Tower Saturday, sounding the alarm about the rapid expansion of data centers across the commonwealth and demanding action from state lawmakers.
The Crozet Gazette
(July 3, 2026)
Calder Kegley grew up on a small family farm in Wytheville, Virginia, learning the fundamentals of sustainable cattle-raising early on. Even before the pandemic, smaller beef farms, meat processors and butcher shops were waning, squeezed out by rising costs and corporate consolidation.
Inside Climate News
(July 16, 2026)
Environmental groups and tribes are suing the Trump administration over a new rule eliminating the majority of habitat protections for imperiled wildlife protected by the Endangered Species Act.
Business Insider
(July 15, 2026)
New York's moratorium on data centers could serve as an opening salvo for leaders in other states looking to rein in tech infrastructure — as well as congressional Democrats hoping to seize on the issue in the November midterms.
This article quotes Piedmont Environmental Council President Chris Miller.
PBS
(July 14, 2026)
American consumers — and the Federal Reserve — are being hit with another high-cost headache. The gusher of investment in data centers — likely topping $700 billion this year — to power artificial intelligence has made memory chips, computer processors and other equipment, as well as electricity, more expensive.
The Wall Street Journal
(July 12, 2026)
Americans are up in arms over data centers. They worry about how much water these buildings use and fume at the amount of electricity they consume. People hate the way they look, too. Now, a small number of builders are on a mission to ensure that new data centers don’t have to be eyesores.
Culpeper Star-Exponent
(July 12, 2026)
Data center construction is shifting toward rural America. At the same time, rural residents report greater concern than urban and suburban Americans about what those projects could mean for their electricity costs and farmland use. That's according to a survey released June 26 by researchers at the University of Illinois and Purdue University.
The Wall Street Journal
(July 11, 2026)
About 30 miles from Clint McRae’s southeastern Montana ranch, a local utility company bought roughly 6,000 acres of cattle grazing land. After talking with local ranchers, he’s deduced that the land might soon be transformed into one of the many large-scale data centers moving into Montana over the past year. His primary concern is water, essential for cattlemen in the western plains who have for years been shrinking their cattle herds in response to droughts.
