“Whither Have All the Forests Gone": A Case of Land Preservation in Suburban Washington

This paper examines a frustrating question for those concerned with environmental issues: Why has land preservation been such a challenge for suburbs in the late 20th century? It considers how land preservation occurs by offering a case study of a grassroots environmental movement in Fairfax County that formed around 1970 in response to plans for a single-family residential development adjacent to the Potomac River.