ENERGY-SAVING mea- sures are the rage, "green" living is hip, and gas-guzzling cars are no longer a must-have fashion statement.

Conservation is cool.

But it's not new. Its roots reach back decades, Margaret T. Peters' enlightening book on Virginia's golden age of environmentalism reminds us.

"Conserving the Commonwealth: The Early Years of the Environmental Movement in Virginia," by the Richmond author and historian, tells the fascinating tale of the time when the Old Dominion was on the cutting edge of America's efforts to clean up its air and water, save animal habitats, preserve scenic landscapes, save historic sites and put state parks within reach of everyone.

Seen from the vantage point of today's party-line trench-warfare politics, it's almost hard to believe all that a devoted group of Virginians was able to accomplish.

And to think it all started in Elizabeth Scott Bocock's living room on West Franklin Street in Richmond. That's where, on Oct. 12, 1960, the Virginia chapter of The Nature Conservancy was born-and two visionary young men, businessman/legislator FitzGerald Bemiss and attorney George Freeman Jr., teamed up.

Within four years, this dynamic duo was spearheading--with state Sen. Harry F. Byrd Jr.--a statewide review of Virginia's natural-resource assets and needs. The General Assembly act establishing the Virginia Outdoor Recreation Study Commission laid out issues still challenging the state 40-plus years later.

Interpreting its mandate broadly, the panel tackled a whole range of concerns-open land, pristine waterways and historic buildings-and set the stage for publication of "Virginia's Common Wealth," which framed Virginia's conservation agenda and inspired its environmental movement for decades.

Local readers will be intrigued by stories about the creation of Caledon Natural Area on the Potomac River in King George County, preservation of riverfront lands along the Rappahannock--now Virginia's longest free-flowing waterway--and the successful fight to stop construction of the Rappahannock's Salem Church Dam.

Peters' perceptive work notes that the state's environment is in deep trouble today despite the prescient work of early campaigners.

There is much to learn from within these covers. "Conserving the Commonwealth" belongs in the libraries of every community and every high school in Virginia, and on the shelves of all who care about her beauty, history and natural wonders.

Clint Schemmer is a Free Lance-Star news editor.