Although the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) has not been found in Virginia, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) encourages residents to check for this invasive pest by looking for signs in their trees and firewood transported from other states.

Some 604 acres of the 900-acre Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship land preserve, donated by the Robert and Dee Leggett Foundation to the Old Dominion Land Conservancy, were acquired June 14 by Virginia's Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). The plan is to use the acreage located in western Loudoun County for a new Virginia State Park.

Future scientists will learn how to capture solar energy to generate electricity and heat through new energy education program with the installation of a solar array panel at T. Clay Wood Elementary School, the first step in an energy education and training program, “Solar for Schools” which Dominion is piloting in four schools statewide.

Amid continued reports of bears in the area of Tyler Elementary School and PACE West School, the School Community Information Office is reissuing the information provided by Prince William County Police:

The program was singled out for outstanding conservation impact among the 80 similar programs that comprise an international conservation network across the United States, Canada and Latin America. In addition, the program’s 25-year director, Tom Smith, was presented with NatureServe’s first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award.

Lockheed Martin-Manassas has joined Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay as a Businesses for the Bay Founding Gold Member. The organization is a partnership of large and small businesses in the Chesapeake Bay watershed undertaking voluntary actions to improve the health of the bay and its watershed, rivers and streams.

On the afternoon of Jan. 3, Karen Shumake, a senior park ranger with the Prince William County Department of Parks and Recreation Department, heard police dispatch go out about an injured hawk located at the intersection of U.S. 29 and University Blvd. Immediately, Shumake realized that she didn't have a safe way to safely capture the hawk that could do real damage with its beak and talons. Fortunately, she got some help from a passing motorist and Steven Neff, a county animal control officer.

Effective on January 1, 2016, the National Park Service will no longer be charging an entrance fee for visiting Manassas National Battlefield Park.