There are very few instances in life where the lessons of history do not need time to be validated.
We are experiencing one of those rare opportunities. History is judging in real time. This Board of County Supervisors does not need hindsight to understand the mistakes of the decisions they are making. They are living a unique real-time reality check.
The facts do not need time for us to understand the “unintended consequences.” No one who sits on this current board will be able to say “if only we had known” when it comes to making the wrong choices with their decisions on the Digital Gateway, Devlin, Potomac Technology Park, or John Marshall Commons Tech Park.
In particular, both the Digitial Gateway and Potomac Technology Park will forever be remembered as the applications which introduced data center blight to scar the integrity of National Parks. These projects will be seen as the work of the wealthiest corporations in the world convincing a local elected body that industrial blight is compatible land-use for hallowed ground and pristine parkland.
The amount of money funneled into local politics by one industry cannot be ignored. Who do the public servants serve? The people? Or their wealthy benefactors.
How many cautionary tales have been written throughout history of those seeking absolute power while ignoring plain and simple facts. As was said in a period drama recreating the events around the American Revolutionary war: “One cannot speak truth to power if power has no use for truth.”
The only question that remains is how will one-term Chair Wheeler and Supervisors Boddye, Franklin, Angry, and Bailey write the end of this local land-use story. Will it be influenced by the big money interests or the obvious truths that continue to emerge.
Through bi-partisan support of protecting the people, protecting the environment, protecting our history, protecting our access to reliable power – highlighted by so many news articles – “their” spin has failed.
Their attempt to make the truth into the lie and the lie into the truth HAS FAILED.
“The Truth Shall Set You Free” — As a community we have indeed achieved that.
The challenge that is in front of Virginia cannot be hidden. We will not succumb to their gaslighting of the truth. The actions of citizens to shine a bright light on their propaganda have been successful.
We thought we would take this moment to remind the residents of Prince William County what is at stake:
The Rural Crescent is not exclusionary zoning – it is a smart growth tool
Smart growth and the importance of the Rural Crescent, even a mere 12 years after its inception, had support from both parties. Smart growth strategies in land use policy, like the Rural Crescent, protect your taxes, your water, provide buffers against climate change, and create opportunities for growing the rural economy. In Prince William County, the recently adopted 2040 Comprehensive Plan will spread high density development – both residential and industrial sprawl – deep into rural areas with no access to basic infrastructure like sewer, water, and no access to public transportation, not even a bus route; while at the same time also expanding massive new developments in the rest of the county. New schools, new roads, and entirely new mass transit will have to be redirected into areas with no ability to support the kind of growth that has been approved.
Rural Crescent Attracts Attention, Strong Support | Conserve Prince William
Urban sprawl | Definition, Examples, Problems, Causes, & Alternatives | Britannica
Rural Crescent – Why do we have it? What is its future?
Open Space – Digital Gateway is not creating 800 acres of parkland
One-term Chair Ann Wheeler, along with Supervisors Bailey, Boddye, Franklin, and Angry, touted 800 magical acres of parkland, only for all of us to discover that it was misinformation from QTS. There are no 800 acres of parkland. It is simply 800 acres of homes on property that must be bought by us, the taxpayers, and then turned into “parkland.” Another false narrative that does not require a look in the rearview mirror, because the facts have been outed and the truth is now alive and well.
Water – Industrialization and residential sprawl are likely to harm the Occoquan Reservoir
Development into areas intended to provide protections will impact the water for hundreds of thousands of residents. Prince William County provides significant stewardship as the locality with the largest land mass of the Occoquan Reservoir Watershed, where nearly one million people throughout the NOVA region get their water. We have already developed a significant portion of the watershed where the headwaters begin in the Rural Crescent, which is why protecting the remaining land in the Rural Crescent is so important.
Fairfax County Water Authority letter
The Fairfax Water Authority is warning the Supervisors of this Board of impending impacts from both residential and data center sprawl in the Occoquan Reservoir watershed; and this letter is public knowledge.
Lake Montclair Sediment Forebay Final Report & Recommendations (pwcva.gov) 2009
Montclair Lake in the Potomac district was the canary in the coal mine. This is what happens when development destroys a stream or creek that flows into a body of water. Now imagine millions of sq ft of impervious surfaces impairing multiple streams and creeks in the west which provide clean drinking water to the Occoquan Reservoir for residents in the east. The proposals to push developer-driven housing and data centers risk their access to clean water.
“Multiple, large scale construction projects occurred within the upstream drainage shed of Lake Montclair. Intense construction activities associated with the widening of Spriggs, as well as large‐scale home construction within the Lake Terrapin subdivision, are possible factors that account for the increased sediment loading within Powells Creek. Had inadequate, improper, or poorly maintained erosion and sediment (E&S) control measures been characteristics of these, an unusually high amount of sediment flowing into Powells Creek and Lake Montclair would result.”
Electric Grid – Data centers risk power reliability
Dominion scrambles to meet soaring power demand | News | princewilliamtimes.com
“Aaron Ruby, Dominion’s chief spokesperson, has said in the past that power improvements near Innovation Park, including a new substation near the Manassas airport and an upgraded transmission line along Prince William Parkway will double transmission capacity in that area. But more upgrades would be needed to power the PW Digital Gateway if it is approved.”
“We’re confident that we’ve got a game plan in place in Prince William to be able to support data centers right there for decades to come,” he said.”
“But not everyone is convinced.”
“Part of the problem is, Dominion isn’t part of the planning process. And they don’t help a whole lot by refusing to share load letters or opine on what the impact of approved development is going to be,” said Supervisor Bob Weir, R-Gainesville, who opposes the PW Digital Gateway.”
“Plans for the digital gateway show at least 12 substation locations for that project alone.”
“Weir said something has to change, “because the developers come in and say, it doesn’t matter what power demand we’re having, because Dominion’s mandated to supply it. … Except now they’ve run into a problem.””
Industrialization next to National Parks is not Preservation
NPCA-Comments-to-Compass-and-QTS-042523.pdf (protectpwc.org)
“Once these lands are developed, they are lost forever. That is why the Prince Williams Conservation Alliance was joined by a broad coalition of groups that include the American Battlefield Trust, the Piedmont Environmental Council, the National Parks Conservation Association and the Virginia Native Plant Society in the preparation of this piece expressing concerns about these data centers. In order to respect the land that holds our American story and keeps us connected to the great outdoors, the Prince William County Board of County Supervisors should not move forward with changes that would allow intense and incompatible development adjacent to its two national parks.”
“The authors are members of the following organizations and are writing on their behalf: Kim Hosen, the Prince William Conservation Alliance; Max Hokit, the American Battlefield Trust; Dan Holmes, the Piedmont Environmental Council; and Pam Goddard, National Parks Conservation Association; and Nancy Vehrs, Virginia Native Plant Society.”
Climate crisis – accelerated by data center demand on power grid
Virginia: Dominion sees CO2 emissions rising (richmond.com)
“Virginia’s total electric use is likely to soar by 121% over the next 25 years, to 211.5 million megawatt hours a year, according to the PJM Interconnection, the group that runs the high-voltage transmission grid serving states from New Jersey west to Illinois and south to North Carolina.”
“Dominion’s plan proposes four alternatives for the next 25 years, all of which include some new natural-gas fired plants, which environmentalists say will still emit the greenhouse gases that cause climate change.”
“Dominion’s Virginia plants emit about 17 million tons a year, and its big coal-burning Mount Storm plant in West Virginia emits an additional five million tons, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.”
“Even with this, Dominion would still need to buy 4,600 megawatts of power to meet peak demand by 2048 — and that could be power generated by fossil fuels as well as clean sources.”
The truth of this power grid and climate crisis is being accelerated by decisions of one-term Chair Ann Wheeler and the four supervisors who refuse to acknowledge the plain facts in front of them. But history is being written regardless……
Virginia’s Dirty Secret – The Coalition to Protect Prince William County (protectpwc.org)