A conservation easement is considered a gift to the nation and Fauquier County can be considered one of the nations crown jewel with some 94,500 acres permanently protected. With nearly one out of four acres under conservation easements and much of it center in the Scott District, Fauquier is providing a national model of balance and sustainability.

For 40 years, the Piedmont Environmental Council has been at the vanguard of protecting the rural heritage of America's Cradle of Democracy. With success comes new challenges and that horizon is increasingly centered on protecting our watershed.

While easements protect the land from future development, they do not necessary protect our water from non-point source pollution from agriculture run off. Today, agriculture is one of the chief culprits of water pollution. This pollution typically comes from farmers applying too much fertilizer and chemicals to crops and/or allowing cattle to freely roam the stream.

Fortunately, many farmers are beginning to understand the importance of fencing the cattle away from the streams and/or installing riparian buffers. Fencing out cattle from streams can stabilize stream banks, improve water quality, reduce erosion and improve the health of the cattle. Likewise, installing riparian buffers usually require planting trees and grasses along the edges of streams and creeks. These strips of land help to both stabilize the stream banks while absorbing agriculture run-off before it makes its way to our stream.

Both fencing and riparian buffers help to create a balance and a linkage between private activity and public good. As one of the fathers of conservation, Gifford Pinchot once wrote, "the connection between forests and rivers is like that between a father and son. No forests, no rivers."

Coupled with easements, these actions provide an enhanced layer of protection.

The other threat to our watershed comes from shortsighted policy. There is a growing push by Del. Lingamfelter (R-Woodbridge/31st) and others to eliminate requirements that developers and homeowners enter into a performance bond or have insurance before installing Alternative Onsite Septic Systems. So, if developers are not on the hook, guess who is? We the taxpayers are.

And what is the failure rate of Alternative Onsite Septic Systems? A report from the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors indicates that 52% of these systems have failed within the first few years of operation. What Del. Lingamfelter is proposing is nothing more than the sub-priming of farmland while creating moral hazard let alone a serious threat to clean water.

So while we have a lot to be proud of, there are hurdles ahead of us.

To help address these challenges, on March 7th at 6 p.m. at the Middleburg Community Center, a Forum will take place to discuss the state of our watershed and to provide information about various landowner assistance programs, financing opportunities of riparian restoration and fencing as well as the chance to learn what other friends and neighbors are doing to create a more sustainable future.

All landowners in the Goose Creek Watershed are invited and encouraged to participate.

After all, what starts out as a trickle on top of the mountain and runs through our farms ends up as a major source of our drinking water. So the actions we take today to improve how we graze, farm and set policies will be felt downstream and at home for years to come.