Department of Conservation and Recreation
Conserve. Protect. Enjoy.
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Media inquiries: Please contact Dave Neudeck, dave.neudeck@dcr.virginia.gov, 804-786-5053.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: February 02, 2015
Contact: Julie Buchanan, Senior Public Relations and Marketing Specialist, 804-786-2292, julie.buchanan@dcr.virginia.gov
Virginia designates 62nd natural area preserve
EDITORS: Download photos of the preserve.
RICHMOND — A privately owned property containing a granite outcrop has become Virginia’s 62nd natural area preserve.
Located in Brunswick County, the 11-acre tract has been protected with an open-space easement and dedicated as a natural area preserve. It is designated as Dundas Granite Flatrock Natural Area Preserve.
Rare-species habitat and exemplary natural communities are protected permanently through the Virginia Natural Area Preserve System. The statewide system now contains 55,371 acres.
The property is owned by Louis “Pee Wee” Powers of Chester, Virginia. Powers, 75, grew up near the site, and part of it was once owned by his family. It had been his playground as a youth. Through the years, Powers worked to acquire the property and purchased it in 2003.
He always knew there was something special about the site. He wasn’t aware of its ecological significance until it was studied by Natural Heritage Program scientists with the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation.
The granite flatrock and shallow soils around it support a Southern Piedmont hardpan forest and two rare plants — Small’s purslane and granite-loving sedge. The conservation status of these resources is rare on global and state scales.
“It was a pleasure to work with Mr. Powers on this conservation project,” said DCR Director Clyde Cristman. “We know how special this land is to him and his family, and we’re grateful that he sought to protect it with an easement.”
Powers is glad to see his property — his legacy to future generations — forever preserved.
“I just love being there,” he said. “It feels good being there. And I know 200 years from now it’s still going to be there.”
DCR partnered with the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation to secure the easement. Funding came from the U.S. Army’s Compatible Use Buffer Program, which helps limit development near training grounds. The property is located near Fort Pickett.
Dundas Granite Flatrock Natural Area Preserve will remain a private property, and public access is prohibited.
Twenty-one preserves offer public recreational opportunities such as hiking or canoeing. For information, download the Virginia Natural Area Preserve System public access guide at: www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/document/napbook4web.pdf
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