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AmeriCorps Watershed Project Update
The AmeriCorps Watershed Project has seven Service Learning Coordinators working with various Napa agencies, non-profits and local schools. AmeriCorps members have come to Napa from all over the United States to teach Napa´s children more about our watershed. Our goal throughout the year has been to increase awareness about how our lives can have an impact on our environment. This is achieved through service learning projects, classroom presentations, guided field trips, and restoration projects.
Throughout the year, we have had the privilege of working with a tremendous team of program partners. The County Office of Environmental Management and the City Office of Public Works are newest to our list, which includes the Friends of the Napa River, the OxBow School, the County Water and Flood Control District, St. John's Lutheran School, Napa Valley Unified School District, California Native Plant Society, California Conservation Corps, Napa County Land Trust, and all the wonderful supporters and volunteers who have helped make this year a great one.
The nature of the AmeriCorps allows members to use their strengths to create a program or project that works best for him or her, while improving on their weaknesses. Some of the projects that we have completed together, and individually, include: stenciling storm drains with high school volunteers in Calistoga, Yountville, and Napa, tree planting projects along Darm´s Lane, White Sulphur Springs Resort, and the City of St. Helena, stream reconnaissance for the Flood Control District, beginning new school gardens at three different elementary schools, water quality monitoring, creation of a video about benthic macroinvertebrates, guided nature walks, leading over 2000 children through the Connolly Ranch, an Earth Day Celebration, Alston Park restoration, and countless other projects.
Sadly, this year will mark the end of the AmeriCorps Watershed Project. Available grant money to fund AmeriCorps programs has become increasingly competitive, and our grant application was denied. The positive impacts that AmeriCorps members have made in Napa are countless, the children touched, unknowable; and the connections made reach far beyond the Napa River Watershed.
CALFED Modeling - Past and Future
Adding Tributaries to the River Model
In December 1999 our RCD staff hydrologists completed the modeling portion of our first CALFED Watershed Stewardship grant. This work added two tributaries, Hopper Creek and Garnett Creek, to the MIKE 11 model of the Napa River system that we have been developing since 1995. This required a field survey of cross-sections of these two tributaries, some sixty in all. RCD and NRCS staff carried out the survey, with extensive assistance from volunteers and a professional benchmark level survey by Michael Brooks.
Besides the cross-sections, the model also required information on discharge in the two creeks. Again with considerable volunteer assistance, RCD staff established three streamgaging stations on the new creeks and made enough field measurements of flow in the 1998-1999 season to develop rating curves, which in turn allowed us to develop continuous flow records for the season. The hydrodynamic models of the creeks were calibrated and validated using these streamflow records.
Rainfall/Runoff Model
In preparation for adding the two new tributaries to the basic hydrodynamic model, a rainfall/runoff model of the Napa River watershed was developed, using eight years of hourly rain data, together with hourly USGS flow records for the same period at Zinfandel Lane and Oak Knoll Avenue. This model was based on the MIKE 11 software developed by the Danish Hydraulic Institute (DHI). To build our model, we used historical rain data as input and predicted the resulting streamflow; the prediction was calibrated to the actual historical flow by the adjustment of various model parameters. The calibrated model was applied to the Hopper Creek and Garnett Creek subwatersheds and further refined using local rain and flow data.
Floodplains and Sediment Measurements
We are about to embark on Year Two of the CALFED modeling effort, which, besides continuing stream data collection and updating the rainfall/runoff model will improve our modeling of floodplains. Floodplains are to be added to the model in selected areas, so that restoration scenarios affecting the floodplain can be studied.
In addition, the new CALFED grant is providing new support to our field hydrology program. This winter, we plan to begin serious collection of suspended sediment samples at our streamgage sites, following up on recommendations that arose from the first year´s CALFED modeling work. For more detailed information, see the RCD web site (http://www.naparcd.org) or call the RCD office at 707-252-4188.
Composted Mulch in the Vineyards
The two year study of using composted mulch in hillside vineyards is underway. Mulch was applied on three hillside vineyards last fall, sediment traps were installed to quantify amounts of water moving through the study plots. Preliminary data will be discussed at two open houses this July. Visitors to the open house will take a tour of commercial compost production facilities, see the various types of compost and mixed products available, and learn about the research plots with preliminary data. For more information contact Will Bakx, Sonoma Compost Company at (707)664-9113, Kerry Williams, Sotoyome RCD at (707)569-1448, or the Napa County RCD (707)252-4188.
Farming in a Watershed Context
The Napa County Resource Conservation District, through the State Water Resources Control Board, has been awarded grant money to study the effects that different farming practices have on the health of the Napa River Watershed. Through a participatory monitoring effort with two Napa vineyards, we will be measuring impacts that include sediment runoff, peak flow increases, pesticide runoff, and soil biota. Our effort is to develop a method of monitoring watershed impacts of farming practices for use by individual farmers. Monitoring of the parameters will be conducted by farm workers and farm managers who will have been trained by RCD staff. The two vineyards that have agreed to participate in the project are Domaine Chandon in Carneros, and Spring Mountain Vineyard in St. Helena.
The RCD has invited participants from various state and local agencies to serve as members of a technical advisory team (TAT). The TAT serves as an advisory committee to the RCD and meets every few months. Our TAT currently has representatives from the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Department of Fish and Game, local farm representatives, San Francisco Estuary Institute, and Nord Coast Vineyard Services. The goal of the project has been to enhance water quality and improve wildlife habitat throughout the watershed.
The data generated by the project will be used to make recommendations of farming adjustments that will benefit the health of the Napa River Watershed, while maintaining the economic integrity of the vineyards´ production. This project also coincides with goals laid out in the Napa River Watershed Owners Manual, which was developed by the RCD for landowners concerned about the health of the Napa River.
Free Compost Publication
Not quite sure how to evaluate the quality of compost? Check out the California Integrated Waste Management Board´s new publication "Compost: Matching Performance Needs with Product Characteristics." This document helps you evaluate compost quality based on your specific needs.
Contact Bertie Mora at 916-255-2708 or via email.
Geographical Information System
The Geographic Information System (GIS) at the Napa County RCD supports all RCD programs and has been very useful in the production of maps for meetings and reports. The RCD GIS program is currently working on a Planning Grant for Dry Creek which will look at soils, geology, vegetation, creeks and roads locations in an effort to identify areas of focus for effects on salmonid habitat.
Napa County has taken a monumental step in the information world by dedicating a Geographic Information System (GIS) Coordinator, Pat Kowta, to organize map and database data. The GIS Coordinator is responsible for compiling and distributing data for all departments within the County to use. The County has implemented a Spatial Database Engine as the means to distribute the data inhouse, and will soon implement an Internet Map Server, so that data and maps will be available online. This is great news for all local government and resource interested groups. We look forward to working on improving the quality and sharing of information for the Napa River Watershed.
Habitat for Hooters
A New Program Focuses on Owls, Woodland Habitat, and Stewardship
The RCD and Friends of the Napa River are jointly sponsoring a new program called Habitat for Hooters (HFH). The program is designed to increase habitat for barn owls in agricultural areas while providing critically necessary education on the importance of habitat conservation and the benefits of sustainable agriculture. The program will also provide an outlet for high school students to gain marketable skills through the creation and operation of their own business. The program will encourage stewardship of resources relating to wildlife habitat.
The main focus of HFH will be the production and sale of barn owl nest boxes. HFH is working with the Vintage High School Agriculture Department´s Resource Occupation Program to set up an owl box production company of student workers. The net profits of the box sales will be divided between scholarship funds for the members of the student business, and supporting the other educational and monitoring programs of HFH. It is anticipated that in the first year of the program, 200 boxes will be produced and sold. HFH hopes to begin producing boxes sometime in the next school year.
When farmers and citizens purchase a barn owl box from Habitat for Hooters, they not only receive a well built and field tested product, but they become a part of the larger HFH program. Each box will include information on placement and installation of owl boxes, owl box maintenance, and the benefits of having barn owls in vineyards. HFH will offer periodic seminars and informational brochures on local wildlife in agricultural settings and alternative forms of pest control. Breeding pairs of owls can produce 6 to 8 owlets a year, so owl populations on farms with owl boxes should steadily increase over time. In future years, as the HFH program becomes established in Napa County, there will be tremendous opportunities for research on the extent of the program´s contribution to natural pest control in vineyard agriculture.
The support of the Napa community and grape growers for HFH has been tremendous. HFH currently has an extensive and growing mailing list of interested vineyards and property owners. This program was developed in Merced County and has seen incredible success and growth since its establishment there four years ago. The Napa program is modeled after the Merced program. Financial support will come from grants, membership fees, and box sales. To become a member or join the mailing list, please contact Janet Barth at (707)224-3464 or the Napa RCD at 252-4188.
The Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group
With funding from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) from the USDA -NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) the Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group held four workshops on sustainable agriculture throughout the last fiscal year and mailed out three newsletters. The workshops covered issues of concern to local grape growers such as "Vineyard Development in a Sustainable Context," "Sustaining Water Quality" and "Soil Fertility and Sustainable Farming." The workshops drew an average of 80 attendants, mainly local grape growers. The newsletters contain speech summaries of the speakers who presented at these workshops.
On August 4th, 2000 the Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group will be holding its first Spanish Language Workshop. Issues such as "Why Sustainable Farming," "Erosion Control," "Pesticide Applications" and "Cover Crops" will be discussed at this workshop. Hopefully this is the first of many to follow Spanish language workshops in the valley, given by the Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group.
The Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group will continue its education for the next fiscal year 2000-2001; having been granted new funding from the EQIP Program. In the next fiscal year the group will hold one English and one Spanish workshop, and will publish 3-4 newsletters. Most of the time and effort will be put toward the group´s long-term goal of publishing a comprehensive manual on "Sustainable Winegrowing Practices for Napa County." One chapter out of this comprehensive manual is already available. The "Integrated Pest Management Field Handbook for Napa County" was published in 1997 and can be viewed on the group´s web site that was designed by member Astrid Bock-Foster. The web site also features all newsletters that have been published by the group, as well as information on the group itself, its workshops and links to other related web sites. The web site address is: www.nswg.org
Partnership with the
California Department of Fish & GameThe California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) is actively interested in watershed planning and fishery restoration work in our District, as the Department's Bob Coey told our Board at a recent meeting.Bob gave a slide talk to the Board on fishery restoration work done in the Russian River watershed and made it clear that the Napa River is a high priority for fishery restoration. The District is currently working on two projects funded principally by the DFG, and one more is in the contract stage.
The two current projects utilizing DFG funding are both related to the Dry Creek watershed. One is a watershed planning grant, which will lay the groundwork for future conservation work throughout the Dry Creek watershed, and the other is a restoration project addressing a site in the lower Dry Creek area.
Later this year we hope to begin work on the Northern Napa River Watershed Planning Grant, which will consist mainly in the application of the Department´s habitat and channel typing protocols to a number of northern Napa River streams. The result will be a community-directed and implementable restoration plan for these streams.
RCD Joint Powers Agreement
with Napa County Planning DepartmentSince 1991 the Napa RCD has had a contractual agreement with the Napa County Planning Department to perform technical reviews of agricultural erosion control plans required under the Conservation Regulations, and to make recommendations to the Planning Department as to their efficacy. The RCD´s traditional role as technical advisors to the growers has been overlain (not replaced) by its role as technical advisors to the County. Plan development and integration with vineyard design have been the responsibility of the grower/applicants.
RCD'´s review has been based, not on a set of inflexible best management practices (BMP´s) or a "building code", but on an exhaustive evaluation of the proposals' potential performance, including computer modeling (soil loss and hydrologic) and an evaluation of the proposals' "farmability." Placing responsibility on the growers has led to the "invention" of a number of technical advances that might never have been realized under a system that required specific BMP'´s. Furthermore, the flexibility inherent in Napa's system has allowed continuous integration of the latest erosion and sediment control technologies with cutting-edge viticultural strategies. The tremendous pressures for hillside vineyard development since 1991 have borne out the value of the Napa Ordinance´s approach, as the developments have resulted in significant reductions in the erosion and sediment that could have been expected under vineyard development strategies prevalent in the 1960´s, 70´s and 80´s.
However, Napa´s Conservation Regulations address only erosion and sediment control. Public pressure for more vineyard regulation based on wildlife habitat, viewsheds, hydrology, and other environmental and land use concerns led the Board of Supervisors to appoint a Task Force (In December 1998) to review the Ordinance and recommend amendments they considered appropriate. Those recommendations are pending as of this writing, but are likely to include changes in stream setback requirements, maximum slope restrictions, allowable peak flow increases, and new application of setback and slope restrictions to currently "grandfathered" vineyard replants.
The already difficult task of the Task Force became dramatically more complex in September 1999, when the Sierra Club concurrently sued Napa County and a number of growers holding approved erosion control plans. Sierra Club claimed that the approved plans should have been subjected to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Ironically, the flexibility and judgment employed in plan review, the very qualities that have made the Napa Ordinance so effective, proved to be the legal achilles´ heel that would halt the plan approval process. Sierra Club argued that the judgment exercised in plan review defines a "discretionary" permit process, as opposed to a "ministerial" review, such as a building inspector might perform. Discretionary processes require environmental review under the language of CEQA.
The County conceded the point, stopping most plan approvals, and began another difficult task: setting up an environmental review process for hundreds of acres of proposed vineyard developments annually. There is new County staff charged with a portion of this work, and LSA, a private firm from Point Richmond, has been hired as well. Once the CEQA juggernaut is rolling, it is anticipated that an additional 60-90 days will be required for Plan approval. However, in the short run there is a backlog of approximately 90 unapproved vineyard erosion control plans that RCD has reviewed. No one knows how much time will be required to work through this backlog.
Apart from the frustration of seeing our work lie fallow in a file cabinet while the process sorts itself out, what this means for RCD is
more work. In particular, the prospect of a limitation on allowable peak flow increases for vineyard developments, either as a result of an Ordinance amendment or as part of CEQA review, may require extensive hydrologic modeling and/or review of applicants' calculations. Some of the Task Force´s proposals to redefine streams that require setbacks would also require more staff time and expertise in the field. In addition, we will continue to develop and maintain our erosion control plan database, some of which will be made public in GIS format on our new web site. All indications are that County government will rely heavily on RCD and NRCS technical guidance during this difficult transition and beyond.
Napa Soil Survey
is Now Available on the WebYou can now access the Napa County Soil Survey through the following address: http://www.ca.nrcs.usda.gov/mlra02/napa.html. You can also visit the USDA-NRCS California website at http://www.ca.nrcs.usda.gov. On the NRCS home page you can also click on the title Napa County Soil Survey.
Cooperator of the Year Awards
Fred Botti and Mike Morris Share "Conservationist of the Year" Honors
The RCD Board of Directors has selected Fred Botti to share honors with Mike Morris as their Conservationist-of-the-Year. Each year the district considers a number of individuals for this award, naming one or two Napa County standouts.
Fred is a biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game at the Yountville regional office. He has worked extensively over the last several years with property owners, resource agencies, and academia, to protect riparian (streamside) habitats in Napa and Sonoma counties. Through his initiative and leadership, a special task force of wine industry representatives, resource agency personnel, and researchers came together to develop concepts for managing Pierce´s Disease, while protecting riparian resource values. Phill Blake, NRCS District Conservationist notes,
"Fred saw the value of research and education as first-line alternatives to regulation. He was deeply concerned with some of the drastic measures being used to control the disease, and wanted to promote an understanding and awareness of alternatives to denuding riparian vegetation." Through his leadership, the North Coast Pierce´s Disease Riparian Task Force has developed a publication and public workshop forums to communicate sustainable farming alternatives to grape growers. In addition to the task force, Fred has also played an active role in the Napa County Conservation Information Group, (CIG). With member representatives from federal, state, and local agencies, the CIG devotes its efforts to promoting understanding and cooperation amongst the various partners working to conserve and manage natural resources in Napa County.
Sharing this year´s honors is Napa native Mike Morris, Resource Manager for Domaine Chandon. The Board selected Mike this year to recognize his long-term contributions to stewardship, cooperation, and technical innovation. A Cal Poly graduate in agricultural engineering and a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC) since 1992, Mike has drawn all of Domaine´s erosion control plans for replanting of several hundred acres of vineyards in Carneros, Mt. Veeder and Yountville. His large-section, midslope diversion design has become the prototype for low-maintenance up- and down-hill vineyard plantings. Other technical contributions are his gravel inlet filters and special adaptations for "T-spreader" energy dissipators. Mike has been very generous with his time and experience, co-hosting a number of RCD-sponsored vineyard tours. In addition Mike offered two of the four vineyard blocks selected as trial sites for the RCD's "Farming in a Watershed Context" 205(j) grant from the State Water Resources Control Board. Thanks, Mike, and Congratulations!
Teacher, Student, Volunteer of the Year Awards
Ted Migdal Selected as Teacher Of The Year
Ted Migdal of Vintage High School has been selected to receive the RCD's Teacher of the Year Award. Mr. Migdal has worked extensively over the past several months with RCD and AmeriCorps staff members on a video of benthic macro-invertebrates. Mr. Migdal has gone over and above all expectations in lending his computer video editing program to staff members and providing training in the use of the program. The 25 minute professional quality video has been completed and will be available to schools next year.
The RCD extends its thanks to Ted Migdal for a year of outstanding achievement!
Daniel Zador as Volunteer of the Year
The RCD would like to honor Daniel Zador with the Volunteer of the Year award. Daniel has been working with the RCD since last December on mapping vegetation change in the Dry Creek Watershed. Daniel has reviewed and delineated vegetation on aerials from 1940 and 1999. His efforts have supplemented those begun in 1997, by another volunteer, Herb Waechtler. The intent of his work is to put the delineations into GIS, to be used to model vegetation change over time, within the watershed. Daniel has put in an amazing amount of time into this project. He is a delight to work with, and we at the RCD look forward to working with him in the future. Thank you Daniel!
Samantha Kennedy selected for Student Of The Year
Samantha Kennedy, a junior at Vintage High School has been selected to receive the RCD´s student of the year award. Samantha started an internship at the RCD last fall and has been volunteering with us ever since.
The RCD has extensive incoming data from our volunteer monitors. It has been years since we have been completely up to date on data entry. Samantha embraced the daunting task of entering several years backlog of data. To her credit, she learned how to work in a complicated database system quickly, and showed tremendous skills in working with computers. She has completely caught us up in data entry - a goal we did not expect to reach in such a short time!
According to RCD biologist, Jennifer O´Leary "it has been my pleasure to work with Samantha. Her good nature and mature attitude is a credit to her, and the entire RCD staff thanks her for a job extremely well done. We hope she will be able to join us again next year."
New Faces at the Napa RCD
Chris Auld, Stewardship Facilitator, brings with him experience in working with Resource Conservation Districts and Natural Resources Conservation Service offices in both Lake and Humboldt counties. He facilitated the development of the Upper Putah Creek stewardship, for which he received an award from the Lake County Board of Supervisors. He received his master´s degree in Watershed Management and a teaching credential in June from Humboldt State University.
Mignon Everett, GIS Specialist, returned to her Napa County roots from Plumas County last summer. She has a degree from Humboldt State University in Natural Resources Planning and Interpretation, with a Minor in Soil Science. Prior to coming to work at the RCD, Mignon worked on the Almanor Ranger District, Lassen National Forest, as a soil scientist. Her background is in using GIS in natural resource management and watershed restoration.
Brian Hines, Stewardship Program Facilitator, will be working with the RCD on a part time basis. He received his degree in Environmental Studies and Political Science from the University of California in Santa Barbara. He then earned his MBA from Golden Gate University in San Francisco. For many years he has volunteered his time to work with Trout Unlimited in developing stewardships and implementing fisheries restoration projects. He also owns an energy consulting and contracting firm in Santa Rosa.
Sherrie Opperman joined our staff in September to fill the combined position of secretary, receptionist and bookkeeper. She is the face and voice that greets you when you come in to our office of call. Prior to coming to work at the RCD Sherrie worked for the County of Napa in the accounting department. She also managed a private business for eleven years.
Rick Ziegler was hired in June as the RCD´s new Hydrologist/Modeler. He recently completed his Master´s thesis at the University of Maine, which consisted of modeling the population dynamics of Colorado potato beetle, an agricultural insect pest of Maine potato farms. Prior to that, Rick received a BS in Engineering and Environmental Science from the University of Notra Dame. Rick is also an ultimate frisbee player.
A Note of Farewell from Dennis Bowker
Thank you to all of you who have worked with me and with the RCD over the past twelve years. I have learned a great deal about patience, hope, the power of creativity, and the excitement of collaboration - which is, after all, the essence of the RCD. This is a thank you note, not a farewell note. I will continue to work with the staff and Board of Directors as an Associate Director. My new position as Coordinator for the Sacramento River Watershed Program, and my work as a member of the CALFED Watershed Program team will provide avenues for future collaboration with the RCD and the Napa community at large.
In mid-1988, I answered a newspaper advertisement for a one-day-a-week position with the Napa County Resource Conservation District. I had no idea at the time what that eight hours per week would become. It has been a fun, frustrating, rewarding, exhausting, perplexing and illuminating time since then. Most of all, it has been highly educational. From the beginning, I have been impressed by the commitment of the RCD Directors, who give up significant time from their lives to serve the community. It is a difficult task whose only rewards are the positive results they see in the watersheds of Napa County. They have my respect and my gratitude for all the years they have worked for the community, and for all the years yet to come. I am honored to serve with them as an Associate Director.
The staff at the RCD are an impressive team. Over the past several years, I have been regularly impressed by the quality and high level of productivity of their work. I have been privileged to work with them, and have learned a great deal from each of them. Kathleen Edson, Bob Zlomke and Dave Steiner in particular make up a leadership team that will be hard to top. I look forward to the continuing evolution of the RCD with complete confidence in their ability to lead the way toward an increasingly productive partnership between the RCD and the community.
And then there is Phill Blake. Not enough can be said about the courage he has shown since I have worked with him. He always puts the needs of the community first, and his own professional needs as a federal employee second. Without his commitment to the Napa community and his willingness to stand up for our local interests, the RCD could not have reached where it is today. His technical skills are well known, but his skills in bringing assistance to Napa in the face of national budget crises and threats of office closure are perhaps not so well known, but are of equal importance. He has been (and continues to be) a hard working, talented and dedicated partner. He helped me be patient when it mattered, and supported me even when I was not so patient when I should have been. Thank you, Phill!
This newsletter is not long enough to recognize everyone who has worked to help make the RCD a success. Even though "naming names" will leave out a significant group of individuals and organizations who have contributed valuable time, assistance and creativity, special recognition needs to go to a few key people and who set the stage in the late 1980's for all that the RCD accomplished through the 1990's. The landowners of Huichica Creek demonstrated to the nation that local management of sensitive natural resources is not only possible, but highly effective; Denis Nickel of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (then the Soil Conservation Service), who recognized the significance of the Huichica Creek Stewardship; Phil Oshida and Jovita Pajarillo of the US Environmental Protection Agency and Keith Taniguchi of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, who had the courage to believe in and support local stewardship; John Norton of the State Water Resources Control Board, who brought the lessons learned in Huichica Creek to the state policy level in the Statewide Non-Point Source Pollution Control Plan; then Senator Mike Thompson, Assemblywoman Valerie Brown, and Representative Dan Hamburg, who tirelessly supported the RCD and the principles of Stewardship; and Supervisors Ferriole and Rippey, who saw the value in the RCD and believed in its ability to add value to the community.
Thank you all for giving me the opportunity to participate in this vast national experiment of locally led watershed management. It is an exciting realm, certain to continue to grow. I look forward to working with the RCD and its community partners in coming years to keep Napa County in the forefront of community watershed management.
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