Nottoway Indian Tribe Of Virginia Tribal Member Gwen Wooden Jones speaks on the OLF project.
Possible OLF sites called endangered
A historic preservation group's annual list of the state's most endangered sites names a proposed Navy landing field as a threat to local history in four counties.
The list, released Tuesday by APVA Preservation Virginia, is intended to provide local citizens "with a tool to raise awareness," said Elizabeth Kostelny, the group's executive director.
It also, she said, gives "some credibility that someone outside the community thinks this issue is important."
The Navy is studying three sites in Virginia and two in North Carolina.
The Virginia sites include land in Prince George, Southampton, Surry and Sussex counties.
Kostelny said the group included these sites because of the possible threat of degradation to historic structures from noise pollution and vibration caused by the jets.
Another threat, she said, comes from the potential loss of thousands of acres of agricultural land, which could affect century farms and other valuable landscapes.
In response, Navy spokesman Ted Brown said Tuesday that the Navy "is fully committed to identifying and analyzing impacts to cultural resources and historic sites" as dictated by a number of national regulations, and that these would be "key areas" in its upcoming draft environmental impact statement.
The Navy will consult with historic preservation offices in both Virginia and North Carolina, he said, adding that anyone with specific information on historic or cultural sites should submit it to the Navy before the public comment period ends June 7.
Kostelny stressed that the preservation group is not opposed to the OLF. Rather, if the Navy does chose a Virginia site, it will encourage the Navy to work with the affected community to ensure its historical resources are protected.
But Surry County resident Gwendolyn Wooden-Jones, who attended Tuesday's news conference, hopes the announcement will cause the Navy to rethink its plans.
The land that Wooden-Jones and her family have farmed for more than 100 years stands northeast of the proposed runway at the Navy's Cabin Point site, which straddles Surry and Prince George counties.
"I think it was a very positive move, in the sense that, before moving any further, the Navy would take a look at all the declared sites," she said. "Hopefully, this will slow up the process, if not totally block it."
Wooden-Jones, who is a member of the Nottoway Indian Tribe of Virginia, said the Surry location includes documented historical sites and Native American burial sites. She said she believes the Navy could find another site on federal land that would have less of an impact.
"There is just so much negative," she said. "We stand to lose so very much."
Alice Higgins, who lives near Waverly, which is between two of the sites, agreed.
"The land at any of the sites is irreplaceable. The historical value can never be brought back once it goes," she said.
"Agriculture and tourism are the two big strengths of Virginia's economy," she added, "and those are the two big areas in which these areas contribute."