Preserve Floyd, originally known as Citizens Preserving Floyd County, is a grassroots community organization that was founded in the late 1970s by Wayne Bradburn and other concerned Floyd citizens to stop the 765 kilovolt Dominion power lines.  Although the power lines divided the county geographically, they united  a diverse alliance of county residents to resist the industrialization of our rural, agricultural, and cherished community.

The threat of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (a 42-inch fracked gas interstate transport line) prompted the re-invigoration of Preserve Floyd in the summer of 2014.  As we stand in opposition to the pipeline and related projects, we also work as activists who are willing to stand up and speak out in order to protect our unique and vulnerable environment.  There are very few places left in the world that are not scarred by industrial and infrastructural intrusions.

We recognize that the beauty, diversity, and natural resources of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Appalachian region are irreplaceable.  We also recognize that there has already been various kinds of environmental damage done in the region and also that many more seriously potential threats remain.  We, in Floyd County, must be willing to work together along with our neighbors to preserve what’s left and to protect what can still be protected for future generations.

Preserve Floyd engages in community dialogue to deeply explore what we DO wish to preserve about this beautiful county that we call home.  We make every effort to address each and every citizen’s ideas and concerns.  There are many ways we can work together to create a vital community commitment to environmental responsibility that also prioritizes economic growth and development.  We believe that our local economy and it’s focus on small-scale sustainable development has the ability to support our children and grandchildren in ways that we are only beginning to imagine.

Preserve Floyd:

• Identifies and monitors risks to the natural environment of Floyd County and the surrounding region
• Educates and mobilizes residents to make empowered choices
• Collaborates with local government and community groups
• Acts to protect and preserve Floyd’s unique and fragile ecosystems and water resources
• Commits to grassroots mobilization and environmental justice