Sustainability Plan - A roadmap to where?

 

Creating a Sustainability Office and Commission acknowledged the increasing environmental challenges we are facing in Prince William County. Their role in identifying a path forward could support the quality of life for all PW residents, now and in the future. Touted as a roadmap for the county to meet Climate Mitigation and Resiliency goals, the draft Community Energy and Sustainability Master Plan (CESMP) document unfortunately falls short. While streamlining rooftop solar in residential areas and reforestation programs (read our comments in support here) are important, it is not sufficient. Any headway we make will be negated if we do not address Data Center proliferation and land use planning that promotes sprawl rather than smart growth.

Linking sustainability to transportation and landuse

By Charlie Grymes

In 2022 the Board of County Supervisors (BOCS) appointed eight high-energy, independent-thinking members.  In just its second meeting, the Sustainability Commission sent a resolution to the BOCS calling for it to "immediately adopt a practice of assessing the energy and sustainability impacts of each new land use, housing, and infrastructure (water, transportation, energy) decision requiring board approval."

If the county starts to measure the impacts of new road projects, data centers, and sprawl development... oops.  More of the same development will generate more carbon-rich emissions, and in 2020 PW County joined with other members of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments to do our share of reducing emissions that increase global warming. If we measure impacts, we will document that token chargers for electric vehicles at McCoart Administrative Center will not be enough.  

Metrorail in Prince William?

Traffic isn't about cars, it's about houses and where you put them.

Increasing density around a transportation hub like a metro station could be an effective way for Prince William to accommodate a growing population while minimizing the number of cars we add to roads.

In addition to being a sound planning strategy, it's also a good way for Prince William to compete for state and federal funds that would be required to build a $20-30B Metrorail project.

The Bi-County Parkway ... It's Back!

 by Charlie Grymes

County officials are planning to resurrect the Bi-County Parkway. They included it in Table 2 of the proposed new Mobility Chapter for 2040 Comprehensive Plan.

The Bi-County Parkway died in 2016 for good reasons (see Myths and Facts and Stewart: Bi-County Parkway project is dead). And there are three new reasons since then that make the Bi-County Parkway proposal even less viable: