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Stop Valley Link

The proposed Valley Link transmission line would cut a 200-foot-wide corridor through Buckingham County, threatening farms, forests, property rights, and the health of our communities. Residents across the region are speaking out against this undemocratic and harmful land grab. Together we can make a difference!

Don’t let this plan occur!

What’s at stake:

  • Property rights – Large transmission corridors can involve easements or land acquisition affecting private property.
  • Environmental impact – Clearing a 200-foot-wide path can disrupt forests, wildlife habitats, and waterways.
  • Community character – Industrial-scale infrastructure permanently alters rural and scenic landscapes.
  • Health and safety – Residents often have concerns about proximity to high-voltage transmission lines, impacting the health of people, livestock, and wildlife.
  • Lack of local benefit – Projects of this scale would primarily serve broader grid needs like data centers while placing the burden on local communities.

 

FriendsOfBuckinghamVA-No Valley Link sign
Friends of Buckingham VA sign

Take Action:

  • Contact local officials: Urge county leaders and state representatives to oppose the Valley Link project.
  • Attend community meetings and speak out: Participate in hearings and submit written comments when opportunities are announced.
    • Buckingham’s Board of Supervisors will vote on a resolution at its April 20th meeting. Contact your Buckingham County Supervisor and voice support for them to issue a resolution against the Valley Link Project at their April 20th meeting, “Consideration of the County’s position and adoption of a resolution related to their position concerning the Valley Link powerline proposed to cross Buckingham County.” Note: this meeting is not open to the public, so you must contact your County Supervisor in advance.
    • Find the agenda for the meeting here
    • Stream the meeting live, if you cannot attend
    • Register for the email for upcoming agenda notices  jlann@buckinghamva.gov
  • Send a No Trespass letter to the developers: Learn more about how you can communicate your opposition directly to the developers. DO NOT give Valley Link or Dominion Energy permission to survey your land! Post No Trespassing signs. They are assessing the value of your land in order to seize it.
  • Valley Link Community Guide
  • Get connected: Share information with neighbors, on social media, and through local groups.
  • Download, print, sign, and mail in this petition:

    petition-against-transmission-line

    Completed petitions can be dropped off at Purcell Lumber (138 West Street, Louisa, VA), or mailed to Robin Horne (2562 Peach Grove Road, Louisa, VA 23093)

    As of April 5th, we’ve collected over 2,200. Our goal is 10,000+ across the 9 counties.

    Press release from Louisa County on behalf of all 9 counties.

  • Sample letter to the governor, by Angela Masonb of Angie’s Critter Care:

    I’m sharing my email to the Governor here, in case anyone wants to copy and paste it. Feel free to use it. In all honesty, I loved John Castonguay’s (Orange County) email so much, I “borrowed” most of mine from him. Please send an email to Abigail Spanberger today. Thank you for your solidarity!

     

     

    Dear Governor Spanberger,

    As a resident of Buckingham County, I am writing to you today to urge you to take action against three interconnected threats to Virginia’s rural character, farmland, property rights, and economic well-being.

    First, I ask that you oppose Dominion Energy/Valley Link’s proposed “Joshua Falls to Yeat” 765kV transmission lines. This project would bisect nine counties, impacting over 130,000 landowners by carving a 200-foot-wide corridor through thousands of acres of agricultural, ranch, and rural countryside. Despite the permanent damage to our landscape and environment, the primary purpose of this project is to power data centers that provide no local benefit to the communities they cross, yet Virginia ratepayers are expected to fund the construction through rising fees on our already insanely high electric bills. I would like you to know that I personally know several Virginians who are currently having to choose between electricity and food because they cannot afford both.

    As stated, the rapid expansion of data centers across Virginia is driving up electricity costs, creating water shortages, increasing pollution, causing health problems in children, adults, and animals, and generating a constant humming noise in once-peaceful, bucolic environments that we call home. These facilities are consuming the agricultural, ranch, and rural countryside that defines central Virginia.

    Third, the Commonwealth’s tax exemptions for data centers cost Virginians nearly $2 billion annually in lost revenue. This subsidy benefits large technology companies while ordinary citizens and small businesses bear the burden of higher energy rates and a degraded quality of life.

    You have spoken previously about ensuring data centers pay their fair share. I hope you stay true to your word.

    I respectfully ask for your leadership in the following areas:

    -Oppose the Joshua Falls to Yeat transmission line project and direct the State Corporation Commission to explore alternatives that protect our rural landscapes. (such as alternative routes or underground lines)
    -Support limits on unchecked data center development in rural Virginia.

    -Reform or end data center tax exemptions so these entities contribute fairly to the Commonwealth.

    Our agricultural, historical, and rural heritage is irreplaceable. Once these infrastructure corridors and campuses are built, the damage is done. I ask that you listen to the landowners and families of the 9 counties that would be affected and take immediate steps to halt this unsustainable and UNNECESSARY development that does not benefit these particular counties.

    Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

    Regards,
    Angela Mason
    Buckingham County, VA

 

FAQ

What is the Valley Link project?
A proposed 765,000-volt transmission line that would run through our county in a corridor approximately 200 feet wide.

Who is behind the project?
Valley Link is a partnership between Dominion Energy, Transource (jointly owned by American Electric Power and Evergy), and FirstEnergy Transmission.

How will this impact us?

Reduced home & property values: Home values will likely decrease 10-12%, with greater decrease in value if there is an easement/utility right of way. Values drop even more if a new power line is being installed.  Reduced home values also mean reduced revenue for the County.

Our health: The World Health Organization cites living next to 765 k/V lines can cause headaches, fatigue, anxiety, insomnia, prickling or burning skin, rashes, and muscle pain. Other studies have found links to increased risk of cancer, leukemia, neuro degenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s & Parkinson’s), low sperm count, and miscarriage.

Environmental: This project is not subject to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review, meaning environmental impacts have not been investigated, studied, or assessed. We can expect damage to wildlife, the ecosystem, habitat loss, soil erosion, and disruption to local water drainage patterns. Transmission lines also pose collision and electrocution risks to migratory birds.

Noise: The lines make constant humming and buzzing sounds due to corona discharge. Listen to the sounds of 765 k/V transmission lines here https://youtu.be/WopU7JXaly8 and here https://youtu.be/PuP1sdLaDnA

How can I find out if my property is affected?
Proposed routes are still being discussed. Check maps and updates as they become available.

Is the project already approved?
The project is in development and not finalized.

 

News Coverage

Cardinal News – “‘My land is valuable’: Valley Link power transmission proposal meets a growing, organized resistance“

Virginia Mercury – “Louisa County officials push back against Valley Link Transmission proposal“

The Goochland County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved allocating $250,000 to support advocacy efforts opposing the proposed Valley Link Transmission Project. 

Valley Link is expecting to file with the State Corporation Commission (SCC) in September. Rakes said that when it gets to that level, the counties impacted by the project should ask to hold those meetings in their respective counties.

“If every jurisdiction does that, they are going to have to come to every single one of us and have some sort of explanation,” Rakes said.

Resolutions Against Valley Link

The Boards of Supervisors in each Virginia County are writing resolutions to formally oppose the Valley Link transmission line. See each one (so far):

Buckingham County (1992) resolution regarding a power line

Appomattox County Resolution 

Culpepper County Resolution

Fluvanna County Resolution

Goochland County Resolution

Louisa County Resolutions

 

 

Take a stand before Valley Link seizes our land.

Virginia Groups Where You Can Get Involved

 

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