Don’t be mistaken: Taxpayers are paying for these big data centers “What we know historically about fossil fuel plants is they’re placed in poor communities, and black and brown communities.” Virginia’s data centers have raised environmental concerns as they consume significant energy to support their operations. The energy demand from these facilities results in carbon… Read more
On December 6, 2023, thirty-two groups from around state sent comments to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) opposing issuance of a new state discharge permit that allows excessive and harmful amounts of pollution to affect our waters. Joining the call was a former Director of the Department of Environmental Quality. The groups are… Read more
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – “forever chemicals” – threatens our health and our environment. Initial studies conducted by the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) have confirmed PFAS contamination in surface waters, groundwater, and drinking water throughout the state. To address this pollution and public health problem,… Read more
Wildlife must be able to move through our landscapes to acquire resources, find genetically diverse mates, and adapt to a changing climate. Roads, development, and other infrastructure can impede wildlife movement and create dangerous scenarios on our roadways for both wildlife and people. Virginia continues to build a network of connected landscapes and reduce human-wildlife… Read more
This is the second in a series of four blogs including policy papers from the annual publication called “Our Common Agenda,” which is organized by the Virginia Conservation Network (VCN) to bring together the many conservation partners from across the state, address pressing environmental concerns, and offer solutions. Wild Virginia led the development of the policy… Read more
This blog is the first of a four-part series reprinting policy papers from “Our Common Agenda,” an annual publication from the Virginia Conservation Network (VCN). This first installment, entitled “Preventing Pipeline Harms,” builds on the hard lessons learned from the fight against the destructive Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) but is designed to look forward, to… Read more
What is in the Wildlife Corridor Action Plan (WCAP) and what happens next? In 2020, Wild Virginia, along with other partners of the Virginia Safe Wildlife Corridors Collaborative, Senator David Marsden, and Delegate David Bulova, supported Senate Bill 1004/House Bill 1695 (§ 29.1-578 and § 29.1-579), which directed the creation of a Wildlife Corridor Action… Read more
Wild Virginia website guru, David Flatley, has been a longtime volunteer with the organization, turning his passion for the environment into activism. From designing and managing our website, making it more accessible to others, to helping with other technology issues, Flatley is a treasured volunteer and a valuable member of our Wild Virginia community. Even… Read more
by Brooke Cormons, Mountaintop Montessori School, Charlottesville The Roanoke Logperch is an endangered fish that occurs in only five river systems throughout Virginia and North Carolina. It is very sensitive to pollution and sediment in the clear streams where it lives, which means that unnecessary projects like the Mountain Valley Pipeline cause major harm to… Read more
Join Katie Keller, Wild Virginia’s Publicity and Outreach Director, and David Sligh, Conservation Director, in their chat about the Campaign for Virginia’s Water Future. In this podcast, they discuss the motivation behind the campaign, the changes it promotes for Virginia water, and the ways you can get involved. Wild Virginia · Clean Water in Our… Read more