Future Fairfax County Community Input Meeting - Topic: Data Centers
Fairfax County staff is studying data center policy and will report to the Board of Supervisors in December. On October 5th, the county will hold a virtual public meeting and we encourage you to attend. Data Centers are inherently unsustainable and without effective guidelines to encourage renewable energy, energy efficiency, protections for our drinking water resources, proper siting, noise mitigation and adequate buffers, they will have an outsized environmental impact on our communities and climate. The massive demand for energy to power artificial intelligence has led Dominion Energy to announce the need to increasingly rely on fossil fuels to meet demand specifically for the growing data center industry, which is estimated to double Virginia's greenhouse gas emissions by 2048.
There is no document available yet on which to make comments but see below a letter the Great Falls Group sent to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission that outlines measures the GFG believes the BOS and PC should be taking.
Interested in owning an electric vehicle but concerned about the cost?
The Fairfax County Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination (OEEC), in partnership with the Greater Washington Region Clean Cities Coalition and the Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington, DC, is presenting “Electrify Your Ride with Tax Incentives: A Carbon-Free Fairfax Webinar” on Thursday, October 5 at 6 p.m. Together, they will answer common questions about electric vehicles and how drivers can take advantage of federal tax credits and incentive programs.
During the webinar, you will learn about:
Tax credits and rebates available through the Inflation Reduction Act and local utilities to help lower the costs.
Tips for first-time EV buyers to help with a purchase or lease decision.
Answers to common questions about EV ownership.
The webinar will be livestreamed on Fairfax County’s YouTube channel as well as OEEC’s Facebook page. No registration required. It will also be immediately available on YouTube to watch the replay after the livestream. Be sure to tune in at 6 p.m. on October 5!
For questions about this event, please email carbonfreefairfax@fairfaxcounty.gov
Are you wondering what it means to "Electrify your home?"
Do you want to see an "electrified" home that has induction cooking, rooftop solar and a classic electric clothes dryer? What about an electric vehicle with a home charger and a heat pump with mini splits?
Then come to Natalie Pien's open house
October 7th from 11am-1pm. RSVP
Meet your neighbors and learn how you can save money while going green. Promptly at 11am we will start with an introductory CCAN presentation Inflation Reduction Act: $$ incentives and where to start with a home energy audit with local energy auditors Home Energy Medics. In addition, a local solar installer SkyNRG will describe how solar systems are customized to your home. Then we will split into 3 groups to rotate through “electrification-stations” to see these technologies in action.
Since May, CCAN’s NoVA New Leaf Team has educated over 400 residents on electrification with our pledge to plug in. Now it’s time to make it happen! Join us to see what you can do in your own home. No matter your home situation, there is a place for you in the movement.
If you are curious about this, then sign up, save the date, mark your calendar, and we can't wait to see you!!
Letter from the Great Falls Group to
Prince William County Planning Commission & Board of County Supervisors
The Need for Strong Guidelines for Data Centers & Comments on Digital Gateway
(REZ2022-00032, REZ2022-00033)
September 22, 2023
Dear Members of the Board of County Supervisors, Planning Commissioners & Sustainability Commission,
We write to you to share our deep concerns about the accelerated growth of the data center industry and its impact on the climate crisis we see unfolding before us. We believe local government must play a larger role in solving the problems that the current scale of approvals for data centers pose for the region. It is imperative that zoning and planning policies are poised to mitigate impacts at the source, and that ratepayers and taxpayers do not shoulder the burden for climate mitigation. For instance, the proposed massive build out of data centers in Prince William County including the Digital Gateway (REZ2022-00032, REZ2022-00033) requires stringent, binding and state-of-the-art requirements for building energy efficiency, a significant commitment to renewable energy, sustainable water, pollution and land use policies and more natural resources protections.
The Great Falls Group's Natalie Pien has been featured in the Fall edition of the Sierra Club magazine. Click below to see the inspiring story of her environmental activism.
image source: Jon Stich, Sierra Club Magazine, Fall 2023
Natalie Pien
Environmental Activist
Sierra Club at NYC March to End Fossil Fuels
Great Falls Group ExCom member Judy Gayer and her husband Dave joined 75,000 other concerned humans at the March to End Fossil Fuels on September 17 in New York City. The march was ahead of the UN Climate Ambition Summit held the following week. The march was the largest climate mobilization since the pandemic and the largest demonstration seeking to pressure President Biden since he took office.
Judy and Dave managed to connect with Sierra Club Virginia Chapter members Glen Besa and Tyla Mattheson during the march. "It was inspiring to see all the people who came out - some from great distances - to express their concern at the inconsistent and inadequate action being taken by world leaders to address the existential crisis facing us all," said Judy. "We know we were seen; let's hope we were heard."
Great Falls Group Sierra Club members Judy and Dave Gayer at the March to End Fossil Fuels
Photo credit Judy Gayer
Battle Lines
by Katherine DeGroff
Article reprinted with permission from National Parks Conservation Association
Kyle Hart, clad in a vest and boots, a blade of grass between his lips, gestured to the surrounding fields and described a war. He identified the players, called out decision-makers for incompetence and reckless choices, and stressed the importance of holding the line.
Though the land on which we stood was steeped in Civil War history and hallowed by soldiers’ blood, that’s not the battle Hart, NPCA’s Mid-Atlantic program manager, was railing about. He was referring to a modern-day brawl between local preservationists and international developers. “This is the biggest, most impactful land use decision in the history of northern Virginia,” he said.
We have new opportunities for volunteers in the Sierra Club Great Falls Group. See nine ideas here to find some that are a fit for you. Local volunteering for the environment helps you and your community by:
Cutting down on emissions by traveling close to home
Giving you a sense of belonging in your own community
Opening you socially to more people in your area
Supporting local projects and people
Teaching you more about your community and other ways to help.
The personal connections you can gain from volunteering locally canopen you up to a wide range of advantages.
Not only will you make new friends but you’ll also be able to develop relationships in the long-term for as long as you live in the area. You learn more about what’s going on in your area, like events, groups and clubs, and more.
For the GFG weekly environmental events email, join the listserv here and select subscribe (or unsubscribe).
The MeetUp group for Sierra Club Potomac Region Outings (SCPRO) is a special activities section of the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter. The group organizes hikes and other events in Virginia, DC and Maryland. No Sierra Club membership is necessary to participate. SCPRO welcomes all people on a variety of outdoor adventures, nature walks, conservation outings, and exploration of our natural and regional history. Join SCPRO MeetUp here
Power for the People Virginia
Recent posts from Ivy Main's blog on energy-related matters in Virginia.
