The Virginia Security Corridor was designated in 2023 and is comprised of two Sentinel Landscapes: Potomac and Tidewater. Sentinel landscapes are areas where conservation, working lands and national defense interests converge. This region encompasses more than 2.9 million acres of land and water in Virginia’s “Golden Crescent,” an area of high military concentration, population growth and urban sprawl. It is also home to some of the Commonwealth’s most abundant resources, including intact forests, open and agricultural lands, and complex marsh and riverine systems that connect to the nation’s largest estuary – the Chesapeake Bay. The Virginia Security Corridor supports numerous military installations representing various branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
The Potomac Sentinel Landscape, anchored by Marine Corps Base Quantico, spans 1.6 million acres and includes a variety of land cover (forests, grasslands, wetlands, farmland, rivers and shorelines) that support essential military missions across Northern Virginia.
The Potomac Sentinel Landscape contains three critical military installations – Marine Corps Base Quantico, Fort A. P. Hill and Fort Lee. These strategically located assets enable rapid transition from training to battlefield operations. Quantico, known as the “Crossroads of the Marine Corps,” spans 54,000 acres and 184 square miles of airspace, supporting joint live-fire and aviation training. Fort Walker offers 76,000 acres for year-round, multi-branch training and room to maneuver, while Fort Gregg-Adams, the Army’s third busiest training site, trains more than 70,000 soldiers annually underscoring the region’s vital role in defense readiness.
Rapid development, infrastructure expansion and extreme weather in this high-growth region increasingly threaten the training capacity and operational readiness of these military installations. These bases depend on surrounding lands to preserve dark skies, reduce noise conflicts and maintain critical maneuver space. Safeguarding working farms, forests and open space within the Potomac Sentinel Landscape is essential to protecting them from incompatible development and environmental pressures. Through land conservation and restoration, promotion of compatible land use, and the enhancement of mission-critical green and grey infrastructure, the Potomac Sentinel Landscape helps to ensure operational flexibility, uninterrupted training access and continuity of operations.
To learn more about the Potomac Sentinel Landscape or join a workgroup, contact Potomac Sentinel Landscape Coordinator Christopher Moi.
Located in Southeastern Virginia, in the heart of Hampton Roads, the Tidewater Sentinel Landscape spans more than 1.3 million acres and hosts a unique blend of natural beauty, vibrant communities and historic significance. The Landscape plays a vital role in supporting national defense while safeguarding ecologically sensitive coastal environments and economically important lands and waterways connected to the Chesapeake Bay and Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuaries.
The Tidewater Sentinel Landscape strives to balance the needs of military operations with the protection of its unique ecosystems, ensuring the long-term sustainability of both defense capabilities and natural resources in a rapidly changing world. Through enhanced collaboration and innovation, the Tidewater Sentinel Landscape fosters resilience in the face of recurrent flooding and encroaching development, while strengthening the quality of life for our surrounding defense communities. Together, we create a landscape that thrives today and remains resilient, at the ready and prepared for the future.
The region’s military mission is focused on maintaining global naval, air and logistical superiority through critical installations such as Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek–Fort Story, NAS Oceana, Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, and facilities associated with NSA Hampton Roads and NSA Portsmouth Virginia, including the Northwest Annex and Norfolk Naval Shipyard.
To learn more about the Tidewater Sentinel Landscape or join a workgroup, contact Tidewater Sentinel Landscape Coordinator Mary Bennett.
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