The Rural Crescent
The Rural Crescent
Prince William County’s Rural Crescent is a 75,000-acre stretch of minimally-developed land that makes up the western side of Prince William County. It’s more than 40 miles of Virginia Scenic Byways, its many farms, breweries, wineries and other rural attractions draw tourists from well beyond Prince William’s borders
The Rural Crescent was carefully and intentionally planned in 1998 as part of the county’s comprehensive planning process, with input from community members. Their goal was to control rapid urban sprawl and preserve valuable open space, agricultural lands, and undeveloped forests within the county. By allowing for undeveloped and protected open space, rural-appropriate commercial development, and low-density housing, the Rural Crescent protects groundwater and drinking water, Prince William’s agricultural economies, and unfragmented habitat for many plants and animals, including many that are federally endangered or listed as threatened or endangered in Virginia. The Rural Crescent is also critically important in helping the Commonwealth meet its clean water and stormwater goals of the multi-state Chesapeake Bay Initiative.
Unfortunately, developers, speculators, some large landowners, and the Prince William County Planning Office and Board of Supervisors are now pushing the boundaries of the Rural Crescent outward, steadily robbing the Prince William community of our rural environment for the promise of profit.
PWFNP
Prince William Forest Park
The largest greenspace in metropolitan Washington, D.C. and the largest example of Piedmont forest within the entire National Park system. Prince William Forest Park is a delightful and surprising oasis. It’s nearly 13,000 acres offer a respite of quiet and calm with fragrant woods and trickling streams that have welcomed generations of campers, hikers, bikers and nature lovers since the 1940s.
Prince William Forest Park protects the South Fork of Quantico Creek, as well as 80 percent of the Quantico Creek Watershed. In fact, the creek is of such high water quality that it is used as a reference steam by which to measure the water quality of other streams throughout Northern Virginia. Additionally, within the park’s boundaries, are 18 miles of streams and two impoundments that are open to fishing.
For its incredible collection of plant species, Prince William Forest Park has been ranked the second most pristine forest among national parks in the eastern United States. From the smallest wildflower to the tallest tree, each of the 900 plant species within Prince William Forest Park has a special role to play in this forest ecosystem.
It has also been identified as one of the most intact interior forest bird communities; its 129 bird species include 15 species of continental concern. It is also home to 46 species of mammals, 22 species of amphibians, 25 reptile species, 26 fish species, and an unknown number of invertebrates.
MBNP
Manassas Battlefield National Park
Manassas Battlefield National Park preserves the site of 2 major Civil War Battles, including the Battle of Bull Run, which marked a seminal point in the American Civil War. With much of its wartime landscaped still intact, the battlefield park today gives visitors the chance to explore the historic terrain where men fought and died for their beliefs more than a century ago.
Park visitors can enjoy more than 20 miles of hiking and horse trails that access the battlegrounds, or drive the 12-miles self-guided tour.
Manassas Battlefield Park provides habitat for more than 168 bird species. Its native grasslands, which are carefully sustained for historical accuracy, are among the most extensive remaining in the county, providing nesting grounds for such species as the grasshopper sparrow, northern bobwhite, and rarities such as the long-eared owl. There are also at least 11 endangered or threatened animal species in and around Manassas National Battlefield Park.
WR
Water Resources at Quantico Creek and the Occoquan Reservoir
The data are clear, land use affects water quality in our streams and reservoirs. The areas targeted for data centers protect the streams and tributaries that flow into the Potomac River or the Occoquan Reservoir, and both eventually flow into the Chesapeake Bay.
With headwaters rising at the perimeter boundary of Prince William Forest Park, 80 percent of the Quantico Creek watershed are protected by the park’s unfragmented and protected natural habitat. Quantico Creek boasts such high water quality that it is used as a reference steam by which to measure the water quality of other streams throughout Northern Virginia.
Forming the boundary between Prince William and Fairfax counties, the 1,700-acre Occoquan Reservoir supplies about 40 percent of the clean drinking water source for nearly 2 million residents of Northern Virginia, including more than half of Prince William County’s total population. Nearly 40 percent of Prince William lands drain directly into the Occoquan Reservoir, largely from western Prince William, where the Rural Crescent helps protect water quality.