Publications

The Piedmont Environmental Council produces a number of publications, including our quarterly membership newsletter, The Piedmont View, annual reports, Buy Fresh Buy Local guides for the Northern Piedmont, Charlottesville Area, and Loudoun County, and more.

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an aerial mosaic of rural land with a blue pond
Easement property in Madison County, VA. Credit Hugh Kenny/PEC

Conservation and Restoration Publications

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Changing Perspectives: My time as a PEC Fellow

PEC’s Fellowship Program, which just finished its sixth year, gives college and graduate students a comprehensive look at the work PEC does in this region—with the hope that the participants will take what they learn …
| | Fellowship Program, The Piedmont View
Wine pour

Farm Wineries in the Piedmont: Finding the right balance

Over the past year, there has been an increasingly heated debate over whether and how local governments should regulate the entertainment activities of farm wineries in Virginia. This is a multifaceted issue with multiple interests …
Lamb family

Hike Revisits Life in the Mountains

In the foothills of Greene County, on May 5, the woods were brilliant with lush spring growth. A gravel road led up and up into the hills; eventually it would end at the border of …
Cedar Waxwing eating mulberries

How Plants Fly

As my mother and I pulled up at the Jones Nature Preserve in Rappahannock, a brilliant bird dipped through the air—a rich tropical blue on delicate wings. They came in this week, Bruce Jones told …
On the Ground Conservation

On the Ground Conservation

PEC thanks everyone who protected their land in 2011—preserving the Piedmont’s natural heritage for generations to come. Read a brief story from each of our 9 counties …
| | The Piedmont View
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Making a Comeback

When Bill Sanford was a boy on Arrowpoint Farm in Madison County, at the confluence of the Robinson and the Rapidan Rivers, the fields were full of bobwhite quail. He could go out after school, …
Hope Porter and Sue Scheer

Forty Years of Conservation

Hope Porter and Sue Scheer have been fighting to protect rural land for decades. It was in the late 1940s that Porter and her husband realized what the post-war surge in automobile ownership and long-distance …
Uranium Mining: "Not the Time to Relax"

Uranium Mining: “Not the Time to Relax”

The uranium in Virginia will remain safely underground for now, although pressure is still building to overturn Virginia’s ban on mining and milling this radioactive mineral. Despite a massive lobbying effort by Virginia Uranium, LLC, …
The Economic Benefits of Natural Goods and Services

The Economic Benefits of Natural Goods and Services

Using a value transfer approach, this study leverages the results of pre-existing studies to quantify the estimated annual contribution of nine such natural services – water quality, water supply, pollination, recreation, forest products, farm products, …
| | Conservation and Restoration
Field Guide to Common Wetland Plants of Virginia's Piedmont

Field Guide to Common Wetland Plants of Virginia’s Piedmont

Use this field guide to learn about common wetland plants like ferns, grasses, shrubs, and trees of the Piedmont region and explore how wetlands can be protected, mitigated, and restored …