May 2024 Newsletter
Highlights: Membership Tiers, Bill Updates, Garlic Mustard Pull, 2025 VWC Calendar Contest, VWC in the 80s!
VWC Turns 55!
Did you know that this year not only marks the 60th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, signed into law on September 3, 1964, but 2024 also marks the Virginia Wilderness Committee’s 55th year advocating for the permanent protection of Virginia’s public lands? In fact, May 25 marked our official birthday!
What started in 1969 with a group of interested people assembled by The Wilderness Society to discuss the five-year-old Wilderness Act and its relevance for Virginia, has grown into the leading federal public lands advocacy group in the Commonwealth.
Many of you have been with us from the start, while hundreds more have joined along the way. Thank you! All of you are crucial to our successful protection and defense of Virginia Wilderness and the ideals it represents.
What sets the Virginia Wilderness Committee (VWC) apart is that we remain the only organization in Virginia whose sole focus is the preservation of lands in the Wilderness System. We remain steadfast in defense of the places and values the Wilderness Act sought to preserve.
The Wilderness Act is one of the most successful U.S. environmental laws and continues to be the guiding piece of legislation for all Wilderness areas, which now includes 110 million acres. Our collective resolve to identify, push legislation, and advocate for public land protection in Virginia remains steadfast. As we celebrate our 55th year and the Wilderness Act's 60th anniversary, know that all of our work is made possible by YOU!
VWC has been behind the identification and legislative pushes of all 224,000 acres of Wilderness in Virginia and the three National Scenic Areas. Our commitment to preserving these wild landscapes ensures that they remain places where nature thrives, providing secure homes for diverse plant and animal species. By safeguarding these areas, the VWC contributes to the overall health of our environment and the well-being of both humans and wildlife.
These efforts take time because they require acts of Congress, especially with changing political climates. With increasing threats to our public lands, particularly from energy development, we need broad public support to be successful in protecting our public lands.
And that’s where you—our members and supporters—constantly rise to the occasion when called upon to defend Virginia Wilderness! With your support, we plan to see both the Shenandoah Mountain Act and the Virginia Wilderness Additions Act reach the president’s desk in 2024!
With an eye to the future, and an aim to strengthen our community engagement, we are launching a new membership structure with different annual commitment tiers, each with varying opportunities for engagement and activities. They are as follows:
Tier Contribution
Member $0 - $34
Supporting Member $35 - $99
Sustaining Member $100 - $499
Champion $500+
All will continue to receive the newsletter, but other opportunities such as hikes, meet and greets, and VWC swag will be available depending on contribution levels, and stay tuned for a gathering to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act in September! If you have already donated at these designated tiers in 2024, first of all, Thank you! you will automatically be moved to that level. Your support will move VWC well beyond our 55th! Thank you for your continued appreciation for protected public lands in Virginia!
What started in 1969 with a group of interested people assembled by The Wilderness Society to discuss the five-year-old Wilderness Act and its relevance for Virginia, has grown into the leading federal public lands advocacy group in the Commonwealth.
Many of you have been with us from the start, while hundreds more have joined along the way. Thank you! All of you are crucial to our successful protection and defense of Virginia Wilderness and the ideals it represents.
What sets the Virginia Wilderness Committee (VWC) apart is that we remain the only organization in Virginia whose sole focus is the preservation of lands in the Wilderness System. We remain steadfast in defense of the places and values the Wilderness Act sought to preserve.
The Wilderness Act is one of the most successful U.S. environmental laws and continues to be the guiding piece of legislation for all Wilderness areas, which now includes 110 million acres. Our collective resolve to identify, push legislation, and advocate for public land protection in Virginia remains steadfast. As we celebrate our 55th year and the Wilderness Act's 60th anniversary, know that all of our work is made possible by YOU!
VWC has been behind the identification and legislative pushes of all 224,000 acres of Wilderness in Virginia and the three National Scenic Areas. Our commitment to preserving these wild landscapes ensures that they remain places where nature thrives, providing secure homes for diverse plant and animal species. By safeguarding these areas, the VWC contributes to the overall health of our environment and the well-being of both humans and wildlife.
These efforts take time because they require acts of Congress, especially with changing political climates. With increasing threats to our public lands, particularly from energy development, we need broad public support to be successful in protecting our public lands.
And that’s where you—our members and supporters—constantly rise to the occasion when called upon to defend Virginia Wilderness! With your support, we plan to see both the Shenandoah Mountain Act and the Virginia Wilderness Additions Act reach the president’s desk in 2024!
With an eye to the future, and an aim to strengthen our community engagement, we are launching a new membership structure with different annual commitment tiers, each with varying opportunities for engagement and activities. They are as follows:
Tier Contribution
Member $0 - $34
Supporting Member $35 - $99
Sustaining Member $100 - $499
Champion $500+
All will continue to receive the newsletter, but other opportunities such as hikes, meet and greets, and VWC swag will be available depending on contribution levels, and stay tuned for a gathering to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act in September! If you have already donated at these designated tiers in 2024, first of all, Thank you! you will automatically be moved to that level. Your support will move VWC well beyond our 55th! Thank you for your continued appreciation for protected public lands in Virginia!
Bill Updates – Good News!
On May 1, the U.S. Senate released a draft of their bipartisan 2024 Farm Bill. The bill includes measures that increase forest resilience in the face of climate change and would permanently protect more than 100,000 acres of public lands on the George Washington National Forest. The Senate Farm Bill includes:
1) Shenandoah Mountain Act in its entirety
Many thanks to Senators Kaine and Warner for introducing the bill in 2022 and again in 2023 and for working hard to find a way to get these bills passed. We are also thankful for a broad, diverse stakeholder group across the Shenandoah valley and beyond.
Please show your support for the U.S. Senate’s bipartisan 2024 Farm Bill and send a thank you to our Virginia Senators today for continually championing these wild places.
To thank Senator Kaine, contact him here
To thank Senator Warner, contact him here
1) Shenandoah Mountain Act in its entirety
- a 92, 500-acre National Scenic Area with three new embedded Wilderness Areas (Little River, Skidmore Fork, and Lynn Hollow), and a large addition to Ramseys Draft Wilderness, all in Augusta, Rockingham, and Highland Counties
- a 5,700-acre Beech Lick Knob Wilderness in northwestern Rockingham County
- 5,600 acres of additions to Rough Mountain and Rich Hole Wilderness areas.
Many thanks to Senators Kaine and Warner for introducing the bill in 2022 and again in 2023 and for working hard to find a way to get these bills passed. We are also thankful for a broad, diverse stakeholder group across the Shenandoah valley and beyond.
Please show your support for the U.S. Senate’s bipartisan 2024 Farm Bill and send a thank you to our Virginia Senators today for continually championing these wild places.
To thank Senator Kaine, contact him here
To thank Senator Warner, contact him here
Inaugural 2025 VWC Calendar Contest!
Calling all amateur shutterbugs! Are you a casual camera person, part-time paparazzi, self-taught snapper? Have an awe-inspiring photo taken in Virginia Wilderness? The Virginia Wilderness Committee wants your submissions of Virginia Wilderness for the 2025 VWC Calendar Contest.
The VWC Calendar Contest launches June 1 and photograph submissions will be accepted through July 15. Contest entries will be judged by experts in the visual arts, who will select at least 15 photographs to feature in the inaugural 2025 VWC Calendar.
Winners of this contest will be notified by August 1, 2024. They will be featured in the 2025 VWC Calendar and will receive a free copy of the calendar. Our calendar will be sent in gratitude to all Sustaining Members (and above) of VWC. They can be purchased individually for $35.
Enter your photos today!
Contest Rules
No Purchase, Payment, or Entry Fee Necessary to Enter or to Win. Follow the Steps below for entry.
Step 1: Make sure your photos qualify
- Photo must be taken in or related in some way to a designated VA Wilderness
- Photos must be in digital JPEG or TIFF format
- Photo must be at least 13 inches on the shorter dimension
- Resolution of no less than 300dpi, low-resolution JPEGs will not be considered.
- To find out an image’s DPI in Windows, right-click on the file name and select Properties > Details.You’ll see the DPI in the Image section, labeled Horizontal Resolution and Vertical Resolution. On a Mac, you need to open the image in Preview and select Tools > Adjust Size. It’s labeled Resolution. - If people are pictured in the photos, they must be candid (posed shots will not be considered).
Step 2: Submit your photo (one entry per form)
- Fill out the Google form on our website, starting June 1.
- Submit your photo by July 15.
***If submitting multiple photos, submit the form for each entry separately.
Note: By entering the contest, you are giving VWC permission to use the photos for publicity and promotion of Virginia Wilderness.
The VWC Calendar Contest launches June 1 and photograph submissions will be accepted through July 15. Contest entries will be judged by experts in the visual arts, who will select at least 15 photographs to feature in the inaugural 2025 VWC Calendar.
Winners of this contest will be notified by August 1, 2024. They will be featured in the 2025 VWC Calendar and will receive a free copy of the calendar. Our calendar will be sent in gratitude to all Sustaining Members (and above) of VWC. They can be purchased individually for $35.
Enter your photos today!
Contest Rules
No Purchase, Payment, or Entry Fee Necessary to Enter or to Win. Follow the Steps below for entry.
Step 1: Make sure your photos qualify
- Photo must be taken in or related in some way to a designated VA Wilderness
- Photos must be in digital JPEG or TIFF format
- Photo must be at least 13 inches on the shorter dimension
- Resolution of no less than 300dpi, low-resolution JPEGs will not be considered.
- To find out an image’s DPI in Windows, right-click on the file name and select Properties > Details.You’ll see the DPI in the Image section, labeled Horizontal Resolution and Vertical Resolution. On a Mac, you need to open the image in Preview and select Tools > Adjust Size. It’s labeled Resolution. - If people are pictured in the photos, they must be candid (posed shots will not be considered).
Step 2: Submit your photo (one entry per form)
- Fill out the Google form on our website, starting June 1.
- Submit your photo by July 15.
***If submitting multiple photos, submit the form for each entry separately.
Note: By entering the contest, you are giving VWC permission to use the photos for publicity and promotion of Virginia Wilderness.
Cow Knob salamander by Steven Johnson
Garlic Mustard Pull at Hone Quarry
VWC Executive Director Ellen Stuart-Haentjens and daughter with pulled garlic mustard at Hone Quarry
Unfortunately, the non-native invasive Garlic mustard plant (Alliaria petiolate) is moving into the George Washington National Forest (GWNF) and threatening special wildflowers, like bloodroot, hepatica, and trilliums, that specialist pollinators rely upon and that generations of people have come to the GWNF to enjoy. This invasive plant out-competes our native plants — both by growing vigorously (shading out the shorter and later blooming natives and producing up to 7,000 seeds biennially) and by poisoning the soil through its roots. Fortunately, pulling Garlic mustard is easy and effective, especially in the Spring, before it flowers or produces seed.
On April 13, conservation groups, including: Friends of Shenandoah Mountain, PATC's Southern Shenandoah Valley Chapter and Shenandoah Mountain Trail Crew; Virginia Native Plant Society - Shenandoah Chapter; Virginia Master Naturalists - Headwaters Chapter; and the Virginia Wilderness Committee joined to rid Hone Quarry Recreation Area on the GWNF of this destructive invasive plant and protect the native biodiversity of this special place.
Together they pulled two truckloads of Garlic mustard. The rich variety of native wildflowers can now continue to flourish without being crowded out by this aggressive invasive species. After they accomplished their goal, they gathered at the picnic area to eat Garlic mustard pesto, homemade cookies, and other treats. Many thanks to all who helped protect the natural biodiversity in this special place on Shenandoah Mountain.
On April 13, conservation groups, including: Friends of Shenandoah Mountain, PATC's Southern Shenandoah Valley Chapter and Shenandoah Mountain Trail Crew; Virginia Native Plant Society - Shenandoah Chapter; Virginia Master Naturalists - Headwaters Chapter; and the Virginia Wilderness Committee joined to rid Hone Quarry Recreation Area on the GWNF of this destructive invasive plant and protect the native biodiversity of this special place.
Together they pulled two truckloads of Garlic mustard. The rich variety of native wildflowers can now continue to flourish without being crowded out by this aggressive invasive species. After they accomplished their goal, they gathered at the picnic area to eat Garlic mustard pesto, homemade cookies, and other treats. Many thanks to all who helped protect the natural biodiversity in this special place on Shenandoah Mountain.
More History of the Virginia Wilderness Committee
Starting in 1982, VWC began an intensive grass-roots campaign to educate the public, and to allay the fear of the Westvaco Corporation that somehow wilderness designation would interrupt their timber supply or force new air quality standards on their Covington paper mill.
In the end, the Virginia Wilderness Act of 1984 represented a compromise with Westvaco. Ten areas were designated as Wilderness across the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest: St. Mary’s and Ramseys Draft on the George Washington National Forest, and Thunder Ridge, Mountain Lake, Peters Mountain, Kimberling Creek, Beartown, Little Dry Run, Lewis Fork, and Little Wilson Creek on the Jefferson. The James River Face also picked up some additional acreage. In all, 54,000 acres were protected. The four proposed areas closest to Westvaco's Covington plant (Rough Mountain, Rich Hole, Barbours Creek, and Shawvers Run) were named as Wilderness study areas (all of which now have been federally designated through an amendment to the above bill in 1988).
In the end, the Virginia Wilderness Act of 1984 represented a compromise with Westvaco. Ten areas were designated as Wilderness across the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest: St. Mary’s and Ramseys Draft on the George Washington National Forest, and Thunder Ridge, Mountain Lake, Peters Mountain, Kimberling Creek, Beartown, Little Dry Run, Lewis Fork, and Little Wilson Creek on the Jefferson. The James River Face also picked up some additional acreage. In all, 54,000 acres were protected. The four proposed areas closest to Westvaco's Covington plant (Rough Mountain, Rich Hole, Barbours Creek, and Shawvers Run) were named as Wilderness study areas (all of which now have been federally designated through an amendment to the above bill in 1988).