tainly” on easing the property ahead of schedule, McCarty

tainly” on easing the property ahead of schedule, McCarty admitted.

McCarty and her husband, a sculptor and University of Maryland art professor, said they began “talking” about an easement nearly three years ago. They will put their 205-acre farm under easement.

Dominion’s transmission line proposal put his family’s easement decision on the fast track, Semple said. His family also began discussing easement options about three years ago.

"The power line woke us up to the fact that our viewshed would be destroyed,” the Realtor said. The Semples (three brothers and a sister) will put an easement on their 462-acre farm.

Chester, an anti-trust lawyer for a Washington firm, described the Dominion proposal as an attention-grabber that accelerated his “long-range plan” to protect his land. “It’s been a constant worry to me for years how to keep this land intact.”

His family owns 1,000 acres. Initially, he will protect 377 acres. Eventually, Chester expects to put the balance of his land under easement.

Before Dominion’s plan came to the fore, Chester put his land in a limited liability corporation intended to make it as difficult as possible for heirs to sell off the farm.

Easements keep farms whole and largely protected against further development. The Chesters, McCartys and Semples hope easements would, if challenged in court or elsewhere, carry the weight of law to repel Dominion.

Fauquier will hold the easements. And it intends to vigorously defend them, Board of Supervisors vice chairman Harry Atherton (Marshall District) said.

He seems certain the’easements will be tested. “1 have no doubt there will be some challenges” to easements that might lie within potential Dominion alignments, Atherton said.

But the seven easements the supervisors accepted for land in potential alignments “are com