Augusta strikes careful balance

The News Virginian / News Virginian
Published: December 14, 2007

The quandary for Augusta County officials is considerable: How to maintain the area's rich, rural character and robust agricultural industry while also making way for waves of development in Stuarts Draft and Fishersville- The Southern Environmental Law Center adds something else to think about. Put in the categories of something new and something old - global warming.

The Charlottesville-based think tank released a report Thursday that blames global warming, in part, on dwindling farmland. Development translates to more pavement and more cars, which produce heavier carbon monoxide emissions and thus warm the Earth. The report lists Augusta among a handful of Virginia localities with large amounts of farmland being squeezed by high-density development.

Augusta officials say their comprehensive plan minimizes development's reach into farmlands by calling for compact neighborhoods shared by homes and retail stores. Augusta County Farm Bureau President Charles Curry says that measure is not enough to negate the impact on farms. "I don't think that'll have any effect on  the [loss] of agricultural land," he said.

We stand firmly in the farmers' corner. Agriculture is a driving force in Augusta's economy and farmers form the backbone of our community, not only its economy but also its character. Still, the interest of developers and homebuyers in locating here is difficult, if not impossible, to ignore. Farmers who sell to developers do so in many cases out of sheer necessity. Operating expenses have risen to the point that for many staying in operation is scarcely feasible.

But they are not forced by factors within the control of local government to sell. Much of what ails agriculture extends far outside the realm of Augusta officials and even that of state officials. Stiff regulations are one factor. Soaring equipment costs are another.

That leaves officials such as Augusta supervisors with the dilemma of how to treat all sides fairly and also how to ensure that the county's doors remain open for growth. The idea of compact neighborhoods strikes what looks to us to be middle ground. It also has the backing of one of agriculture's backers — Supervisor Nancy Sorrells.

As for the environmental law center's assertion that development akin to what we have seen in Augusta plays a part in global warming, we are not ready to buy the claim. We are not scientists, to be sure, but a drive through Augusta is hardly a journey through a paved jungle. Vast open spaces dotted by silos and grazing cattle remain in abundance.

Sensitivities run high on the subjects of both agriculture and the environment, and, we think, with good reason. The people who make the decisions that shape our communities have a duty to consider that fact in conjunction with the overall good of all of the people involved. To this point, Augusta officials look to us to be following a balanced, prudent course. This is as it should be.