37-year-old Dustin Watson is up before dawn, checking on his herd of 80 cows and calves. Then it’s off to his day job as a construction manager at the University of Virginia. It’s not an easy life, but it’s the life he’s loved since he was a kid.
“My grandfather was like my best friend, and he loved it more than anything, so I guess it kind of rubbed off on me,” he explains.
He wanted to take care of the 275-acre farm when the original owners— his great-grandfather and grandfather— were gone. But when the time came, there was a big problem. Grandpa had left the farm to Dustin’s mother and aunt. His mom had Alzheimer’s, and his aunt needed the money it would bring if she sold the land.
“It was more than just losing a piece of property," he recalls. "It’s part of who I am – my family’s legacy. I was close with my great grandfather too. I was 18 years old when he passed away, and I promised him that I would take care of this place, and the same for my grandparents. Losing this place would be like I’m breaking a promise to the people who meant the most to me in my life.”
And to make matters worse, the value of the land in Green County kept rising.
“We are only a couple of miles off of 29, and that’s the main corridor between Charlottesville and Northern Virginia," Watson says. "We’re just a few miles from where 29 and 33 intersect, and Ruckersville is booming.”
Fortunately, Dustin’s grandfather had offered lessons beyond the art of farming.
“Just because you have some tough obstacles in front of you doesn’t mean you give up. He’d always get out of bed early in the morning and take on the day and whatever it brought on, he was fearless about it.”
So Dustin started making calls. He discovered the Piedmont Environmental Council, or PEC, would actually pay him to put his land in conservation easement so it could not be developed.
”We’re working to protect farm and forest land in our nine-county region," says PEC’s Michael Kane.
He wanted to help Dustin. By fencing cattle out of streams on the farm and planting trees that would prevent erosion, he figured the whole area would benefit.
“From the top of the Blue Ridge all the way through the watershed, clean water is really important for our wells, but also as a public drinking water source for the city of Fredericksburg, other communities and also for wildlife habitat and for the agricultural community,” he explains.
But he knew it would take time to come up with the money Dustin needed, since PEC would have to apply for state and federal grants.
“We knew that it was going to take a couple of years, so that’s when we reached out to American Farmland Trust. We suggested, and they were very open to doing a short-term bridge loan for him until the grant came through.”
Jen Perkins oversees trust activity in the Mid-Atlantic region.
“Our mission is to save the land that sustains us, support farmers and keep land in agriculture for the future," she says. "Virginia is under the threat of development from sprawl to the data centers that are now coming in. It is an emergency!”
This spring, the Piedmont Environmental Council gave Dustin the money he needed to buy his aunt out and save the farm. He and his wife, Gillian, celebrated, knowing they could keep living on and working the land they love – and the child they’re expecting in July could someday own the farm.
PEC also celebrated, but not for long. They’ve invited other farmers to come by their headquarters in Warrenton this Saturday – to learn more about how to ensure their land stays in the family and remains in farming.
