February 29—Friends Seminar & Barbeque – Conservation Easements 

Friends of the Blue Ridge Mountains is hosting a free seminar and barbeque at Shadow Creek.

The topic will be the value of preserving land through conservation easements, including the financial and tax benefits. Speakers will include attorneys, landowners, conservation buyers, appraisers, and representatives from various land preservation organizations. A detailed agenda is provided.

We are presenting the seminar in conjunction with Shadow Creek to promote the preservation of land for agricultural use, open space, and habitats for native species and natural habitat.

There is no cost for this event thanks to the generous support of our sponsors including the Virginia Easement Exchange.

The seminar beginning at 6:00 PM, will be held at Shadow Creek wedding and event venue, at 18090 Silcott Springs Road, Purcellville, Virginia, 20132.

 https://weddingsatshadowcreek.com/ 

To register for this free event please contact D. Brook Middleton at the Virginia Easement Exchange at 540-364-8071 or dbmcpa@aol.com.

 Loudoun County Board of Supervisors March Meeting 

At the March 13^th meeting, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors will be addressing two issues of major importance to the future of the Blue Ridge Mountains: preservation of prime agricultural soils; and rezoning for the proposed Belmont Innovation Data Center.  

Prime Soil Initiative – The Loudoun Conty Board of Supervisors (BOS) will deal with a proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment (ZOAM) to amend the Cluster Subdivision Option in Western Loudoun (AR-1 and AR-2 Zoning Districts). The objective of the ZOAM is to preserve prime agricultural soils to support the long-term viability of farming as outlined in the Loudoun County 2019 General Plan.

While there is consensus on the importance of preserving prime agricultural soils in Western Loudoun’s cluster subdivisions there is significant controversy regarding exactly how much of the land within a cluster subdivision must be preserved for non-residential, agricultural uses. Agricultural interests, of course want to maximize the amount reserved while developers and non-agricultural interests want to minimize the amount.

Of particular interest to FBRM’s readers is the relationship between preserving land for agricultural purposes and conservation easements which have proven to be a significant tool for protecting Western Loudoun and the Blue Ridge Mountains from over development.

The greater the financial value of the land, the greater the financial incentive for the landowner to put the land in a conservation easement. The more land in a cluster subdivision is preserved for agricultural uses the less the financial value of the land and thus the less incentive landowners have to put the land under a conservation easement.
It is probable that at the March 13^th meeting the Board will decline to make a final decision on the prime soil ZOAM and will refer the matter to the Transportation and Land Use Committee (TLUC) for further study.

Belmont Innovation Data Center — The proposed Belmont Innovation Campus will cover 112 acres on the west side of Belmont Ridge Road south of Rt. 7. The developer is requesting rezoning and a special exception application to add 1.9 million square feet of data center space in addition to the 2.9 million square feet permitted by-right.

There is a considerable degree of public concern about the amount energy that the Belmont Innovation Center will use and how the energy will be brought to the site. The complex is expected to use 600 MW of power — equal to the amount of energy used by one-third of the residential units in Loudoun.

FBRM concerns about the construction of a high energy transmission line through Western Loudoun are outlined in another article in this edition of Happenings Around the Blue Ridge.

During a Jan. 10 public hearing, the Supervisors expressed concerns about the energy demands. According to Loudoun Now, County Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large) said she was concerned about the power demand.

“This campus adds like 20% more data center usage in this county than all of our data centers combined right now. It is a huge, huge amount of data center space, power, and [density],” Randall said. 

“Is there just no stopping at this point? I don’t know how to deal with this anymore,” she said.

“What are we going to do about power? What are we going to do about a powerline coming through Waterford?” she said. “We don’t have power anymore. We don’t. I don’t know what we can do about this.”

Quoting Loudoun Now: Speakers at the hearing raised similar concerns, urging supervisors to better assess the power limitations, recognize that the cost of transmission lines will be borne overwhelmingly by area residents, and work to dictate where power lines may go. LPM

State Support for County Purchase Development Rights Programs 

The Loudoun County Department of Planning and Zoning will initiate a study of a Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program for the County.

The intent of a PDR program is to permanently protect working farm and forest land, open space, or aesthetically pleasing landscapes from development, while retaining private ownership and management.

PDR is a voluntary program in which a landowner sells the development rights of a parcel of land to a public agency, land trust or unit of government. A conservation easement is recorded on the title of the property that limits development permanently. While the right to develop or subdivide that land is permanently restricted, the landowner retains all other rights and responsibilities associated with that land and can use or sell it for purposes allowed in the easement.

If implemented in Loudoun County, a PDR program could be a significant tool to protect land in the Mountain Overlay District (MOD) from further development.

22 Virginia localities have PDR programs including Clarke, Fauquier, Shenandoah, Rappahannock, and Stafford counties. Funding for the programs range from $50,000 to $20 million dollars. Common sources to fund PDR programs include general appropriations, real estate transfer taxes, bonds (most popular) and donated lands.

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) recently announced awards totaling $875,000 from the Virginia Farmland Preservation Fund to six localities to support PDR programs. The recipients of this year’s matching grant funds include Clarke, Fauquier, Shenandoah, and Stafford counties.

Morning AgClips quotes Virginia Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Matthew Lohr “Agriculture is Virginia’s largest industry and investing in farmland preservation is an investment in Virginia’s economic future. Our partnerships with local governments help to protect critical working lands while enhancing food security in the Commonwealth. In addition, preservation of open spaces helps to mitigate flooding and protect natural resources.”

Since the program’s inception in 2008, a total of $13.3 million in state matching funds have been used in partnership with 16 local PDR programs to permanently protect more than 14,950 acres on 115 farms. LPM

Friends Participates in Leadership Summit 

Larry Malone, Executive Director of Friends, and Norm Myers Friends Board member joined leaders of at least two dozen other conservation / environmental organizations, in a “Leadership Summit” hosted by The Waterford Foundation. The purpose of the summit was to develop a strategy regarding the proposed 500 kV transmission line, known as the MidAtlantic Resiliency Link, that NextEra Energy is proposing to build through Western Loudoun County.

NextEra has not yet released the proposed route of the transmission line and probably will not before May 2024. However, it is probable that the route will cross over our Blue Ridge Mountains and through Westen Loudoun. NextEra will submit the proposed route to the State Corporation Commission (SCC) and seek approval by the end of calendar 2024.

Loudoun County government does not have a formal role in reviewing, approving, or denying the route.

Over the course of the evening’s discussion a rough consensus began to develop over two points.

1. It is unlikely that the construction of the transmission line can be totally stopped. It is probable that a high energy transmission line will be constructed over the next couple of years and that the line will cross Western Loudoun County.

2. It is realistic to think that collectively the organizations can influence the route of the transmission line as it crosses Loudoun. In particular, the organizations oppose a “greenfield “route.  Construction along existing transmission line right of way is preferable. However, even if constructed along an existing transmission right of way, the size of the line will demand that the right of way be widened by about thirty (30) feet.

Friends of the Blue Ridge Mountains will urge consideration of an underground route such as required by the California Public Utilities Commission. Not only is an underground route less visually intrusive, but it also significantly reduces the danger from wildfires. As climate change warms the east coast, the risk of wildfires becomes an ever-increasing danger in the Blue Ridge.

According to a 1/4/2024 article in the energy industry newsletter T&D World “Our customers in high fire-risk locations where we have undergrounded power lines not only benefit from wildfire mitigation, but also improved reliability at the lowest cost over the asset lifecycle,” Peter Kenny, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) senior vice president. Undergrounding eliminates nearly 98% of the risk of wildfire ignition from electrical equipment. While the cost of undergrounding is a major consideration PG&E has found ways to reduce the costs below initial estimates. Costs were initially projected to be $4 million per mile when the program first started, PG&E targeted cost reductions to $3.3 million per mile by 2023. In fact, the unit cost has now fallen below $3 million per mile.

As a next step the organizations agreed to produce a comprehensive report documenting the impact of the line on Loudoun’s economy, environment, wildlife, history, and culture.  The report will be sent to NextEra, the State Corporation Commission, and other parties in the decision process.

The Waterford Foundation has started a change.org petition at https://www.waterfordfoundation.org/transmission-lines/ . Please consider adding your name to oppose the MidAtlantic Resiliency Link.

Throughout 2024 Friends will be working with numerous community-based organizations to minimize the negative impacts of the line on our Blue Ridge Mountains and continue to keep you informed on this issue. LPM

Virginia Legislation Proposed to Protect Tree Canopy 

Between 2014 and 2018, more than 9,500 acres of forest and urban tree canopy have been lost to development across Virginia. The state will continue to lose trees at a rapid rate due to development pressures, energy infrastructure, widening interstates, wildfires, climate change, and invasive species.

The loss is likely to be particularly acute in Loudoun County and Northern Virginia because of development pressures.
As mentioned in the January 18, 2024, edition of Happenings Around the Blue Ridge, Loudoun County will initiate its first ever Tree Canopy study in 2024 which will give us a good picture of our current tree canopy. However, it will require several studies over multiple years before we can assess the change in the tree canopy.

Several bills have been introduced in the 2024 Virginia legislative session that would give counties and local governments broad authority to protect the existing tree canopy and to replace trees lost to development.

According to Ann Jurczyk with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation “The alarming loss of our tree canopy has ripple effects for Virginians who are seeing their backyard streams erode, their streets flood, and their utility bills increase. These bills empower local governments with tools to preserve their trees, enhance their communities, and prepare Virginia to be a climate-ready Commonwealth.” 

House Bill 529, introduced by Del. Patrick Hope would expand the authority to all localities to establish tree replacement requirements and allow statewide adoption of tree conservation language.

House Bill 170, introduced by Del. Karen Keys-Gamarra would allow localities to conserve more developing trees and encourage localities to preserve mature trees. It also would provide flexibility for how localities decide to use tree funding.

House Bill 459 introduced by Del. Richard Sullivan would allow localities to incentivize developers to assess a site plan in hopes of identifying ways to preserve existing healthy trees. Further, it would allow tree funds to be used for tree maintenance.

House Bill 309, introduced by Del. Patrick Hope would permit the state of Virginia to identify how many acres of forests are healthy and determine the cause for lost acreage and how to remedy that through forest fragments and other conservation efforts.

It is too early to know if any of the bills will actually be enacted into law.  LPM