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| Napa County Resource Conservation District |
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RCD home |
Vineyard Erosion Research Underway
Conserving soil in hillside vineyards isn’t just a sustainable farming issue anymore. More and more often, the public is asking for an accounting of how much soil makes its way off the land and ends up as sediment in our streams and lakes. The NRCS and RCD have been engaged in modeling vineyard soils and landscapes for nearly 20 years in Napa County. Equation factors used in the models have gradually been fine-tuned and have become valuable tools in predicting the effectiveness of various conservation practices.
Over the past year, the NRCS and RCD have embarked on studies to examine soil erosion and sediment transport with in-field instrumentation. One of the projects, entitled, “Composted Mulch In Hillside Vineyards,” (CMV) takes a look at the use of municipal composted yard waste as a material to apply under the trellis wire for soil erosion control and other potential benefits. Plots have been set up in four North Coast vineyards, including two in the hills of Napa County. Sediment traps that measure relative volumes of erosion runoff between plots with composted treatments and plots with traditional weed control techniques are yielding valuable new information regarding the movement of soil. Phill Blake, District Conservationist notes, “The CMV is providing some interesting information, not only on soil erosion and the effectiveness of mulches, but also on the rate of water runoff in response to various storm events. In addition to utilizing real-time winter storm data, one of our sites uses a rainfall simulator, which allows us to collect information from precisely metered storms.”
The CMV, funded through a grant from the California Solid Waste Management Board is a collaborative study with the University of California Cooperative Extension Service, Sonoma Compost, Beringer Vineyards, Walsh Vineyard Management, and other RCD and private partners in Sonoma and Napa Counties.
Visit the RCD On-Line
The Napa County Resource Conservation District is now available on the world wide web! Log onto www.naparcd.org and find an ocean of information. The site is updated on a regular basis and includes information about our activities, programs, staff, board members, and mission statement.
A list of publications available at the RCD is available along with links to other interesting and related sites.
The Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group:
Promoting Sustainable AgricultureNapa Valley is well advanced in the acceptance and application of sustainable farming practices and serves as an admirable example to other farming communities throughout the nation.
The Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group’s (NSWG) mission is to identify and promote grapegrowing practices that are economically viable, socially responsible, and environmentally sound. The group uses workshops and newsletters as tools for education and outreach to grapegrowers and the general public.
Since 1997, NSWG has hosted numerous educational workshops on sustainable grapegrowing. Past workshop discussions have included the importance of trees, wetlands, wildlife, water quality and streambed restoration in vineyard development and farming.
In March 2001, NSWG held its first workshop for the community.The goal was to educate the public regarding the sustainable grapegrowing practices that are currently applied in Napa County.Over 80 people participated in this well received workshop.
In the summer of 2000, NSWG hosted its first Spanish speaking workshop on sustainable farming. Over 80 people attended this workshop and participants were so enthusiastically involved that the group decided to hold a second Spanish speaking workshop in 2001.
During the winter of 2000, NSWG commissioned a well respected local writer, Juliane Poirier-Locke, to publish a book on sustainable winegrowing practices. The book will cover topics such as water quality, watershed processes, erosion control, riparian restoration, integrated pest management, managing for wildlife, and preserving wetlands.
The Sustainable Winegrowing Book is scheduled to be completed in December of 2001. NSWG is currently seeking funding to aid in the completion of the book and to ensure a wide distribution of this important publication.
To find a schedule for upcoming workshops, to read any of NSWGs published newsletters and publications, or to get more information on the Napa Sustainable Winegrowing Group, visit our web site at www.nswg.org.
If you are interested in making a contribution or would like information on NSWG, please contact Astrid C. Bock-Foster at 707-252-4188 or at nswg@naparcd.org.
An Assessment of Fisheries
in the Napa River WatershedThrough a variety of granting agencies and partners, including the California Department of Fish and Game and the Friends of the Napa River, the RCD will be busy this summer conducting several habitat surveys in the Napa River watershed.
Surveys will include aquatic habitat and sediment measurements and will identify areas of good and poor habitat for steelhead trout. In addition to characterizing the habitat, the surveys will help us build relationships with landowners in the Napa Valley and lead to future restoration projects. These surveys will continue to build upon the assessment work that has already begun in the Napa River watershed.
In April, RCD staff assisted the Friends of the Napa River in an ongoing benthic-macroinvertebrate (aquatic insect) project for the Napa River. Many volunteers participated to collect insect samples and learn more about the biological integrity of the watershed.Results of last year’s sampling showed the Napa River to have a large amount of diverse invertebrates. Our close proximity to the coastal and Sacramento River watersheds may explain the diversity. Several new species were discovered and we are excited to begin processing samples from this year.
In July, Steve Brady, the RCD biologist, will assist the Friends of the Napa River in snorkeling as many tributaries to the Napa river as possible. These surveys will identify the distribution of fish within the watershed with an emphasis on juvenile steelhead. The counts will provide excellent baseline data for fish distribution and will only minimally affect steelhead, which are listed as an threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. We are hopeful that the data will identify areas for future restoration work.
For more information regarding the assessment work with which the RCD is involved, please contact the RCD's biologist at 252-4188.
Meet the RCD’s New Staff
Several new and talented people joined the RCD team right after the new year began. Please come by the office to meet them personally and help us welcome them to the RCD.
Blaine Jones joins us as a hydrologist. He will be working primarily on stream and floodplain surveying, stream discharge measurements and modeling of hydrodynamics. He moved to the Napa Valley from Southern California where he recently earned his Master of Science degree in Geography from the University of Southern California. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Ecology from Emory University in Georgia. When Blaine is not working he can be found kayaking California rivers and streams. When we discovered that he played baseball in college we immediately drafted him to be on the undefeated RCD softball team.
Leigh Sharp is our Watershed Coordinator and Stewardship Facilitator. She has experience in program coordination and educational outreach and most recently worked as a Water Conservation Specialist with the Sonoma County Water Agency. Leigh has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from the University of California at Riverside and earned her Master of Science degree in Agricultural and Resource Economics from Oregon State University. Most of her time at the RCD will be focused on coordinating the activities of local stewardship groups. However, during the short time she has worked here she has already written two grant proposals, produced a newsletter and lit fires under several other projects. Her many skills, combined with being organized, focused and approachable make Leigh a valuable asset to the RCD.
Steve Brady is our new biologist. Steve graduated from Humboldt State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in freshwater fisheries. He comes from the Sonoma County Water Agency where he specialized in fisheries biology in the Russian River Watershed. He will be working on many projects at the RCD including training volunteers for our watershed monitoring program. He will also be lending support to a benthic macroinvertebrate study and total basin fish count study organized by the Friends of the Napa River. Steve can be found in the office, in the classroom or snorkeling in the watershed creeks.
Lara Hadhazy is the newest member of our team. She will be working at the RCD part time coordinating our restoration projects. Part of her duties will include assisting landowners with plan design and getting through the permit process. Lara has lived in Napa for several years and brings with her experience from working with local engineering and surveying firms. She has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz where she studied Surface Processes, Environmental Geology and Environmental Studies.
Chip Bouril Joins Napa NRCS
Chip Bouril was recently named as part time NRCS Soil Conservationist. He will be filling in for some of Kelly Gin’s duties, now that she has reduced hours to spend more time at home with her son Calvin. Chip brings a lot of experience and skill to his new job, having been involved with land use and conservation issues for many years in Napa County. He has been a board member of the Land Trust of Napa County, in addition to extensive volunteer work with the Dry Creek Stewardship, and previous special project assignments with the RCD and NRCS. He plans to balance his time between NRCS and LSA, an environmental consulting firm he joined last fall.
Phill Blake, District Conservationist is excited about the opportunity to bring Chip aboard. He notes, “Chip has demonstrated the patience of Job, working hard to finish his final college requirements, while waiting for nearly a year for this job to materialize. He set aside other promising opportunities to take this job, because he believes NRCS has a positive, and direct impact on land stewardship in Napa County. With that kind of attitude, how could we say NO?”
NRCS Grants Program is Saving Soil
The USDA’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program, (EQIP) has produced impressive results since its introduction to Napa County four years ago. Signups for the 2001 program recently closed, marking over $500,000 in USDA funds having gone toward nearly 70 projects since 1997. Locally, EQIP has provided funds to implement soil erosion control practices, riparian habitat enhancement plantings, and water quality protection measures on farms and ranches in the Napa River and Putah Creek watersheds.
More impressive than the financial figures, however, are the benefits to the land. Hundreds of acres of no-till cover crops have been planted in established vineyards and thousands of acres of prescribed grazing management systems have been instituted on rangelands. These projects have resulted in the reduction of many thousands of tons of soil erosion. Phill Blake, NRCS District Conservationist notes, “We’re also pleased to report that agricultural producers are expending significant resources toward protecting and enhancing natural environments along significant reaches of the Napa River and its tributary streams. We often read negative opinion pieces in the press, portraying agriculture as a foe of the environment. It’s nice to report that some of the best examples of land stewardship in California are being practiced by Napa County producers. We’re glad that EQIP can help with some of that effort.”
Sustainable Demonstration Vineyard Shows a Profit
The Huichica Creek Vineyard Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration is nearing maturity. The last block, planted in 1997, is expected to bear its first crop this fall. Last year’s harvest showed black ink, at about four tons per acre from the blocks in production. However, this year we sustained about 30% estimated crop loss from a freak frost on April 3. Our frost-protection strategy of delayed, two-stage pruning was simply not adequate given the dry spring and unseasonable warmth of March. Fortunately, the RCD Board, in February, voted to purchase the maximum amount of crop insurance available, so the fiscal sting will be significantly mitigated. On a positive note, we have just renewed our grape sales contract with the Robert Mondavi Winery. We look forward to continuing to work with our partners-in-stewardship for at least the next five vintages.
As for the non-crop areas of the demonstration vineyard, riparian tree and shrub plantings and willow revetments have stabilized the crumbling creek banks and created significant cover and shade in the corridor. Winter and early spring water impoundment behind the flashboard weir (installed in 1999) is having an effect on the plant populations in the wetland areas, where exotic annual grasses are beginning to give way to native perennial grasses and wetland forbs. A walk along the creek or through the wetland is likely to generate indignant squawks as nesting pheasants, ducks, and shorebirds flush from cover or beat the water to distract the potential predator from their respective nesting sights. It’s working…
Something Fishy about Local Storm Drains
Non point source pollution is the leading cause of water pollution in California today. Many contaminants enter the water system through city storm drains. The Napa County Resource Conservation District organized a day of Storm Drain Stenciling that was held on June 2. Volunteers painted the neighborhoods of Westwood Hills, Alta Heights, and the Trower Planning Area with storm drain stencils which read, “No Dumping, Drains to Napa River.” Volunteers were provided stencils, spray paint, buckets, brushes and orange vests for the event. If you are interested in having the storm drains in your neighborhood painted, contact Michael Champion at 252-4188.
What’s New in Napa River Watershed Hydrology
With funding from the County of Napa and the California State Coastal Conservancy, RCD staff completed the hydrologic study component of the Lower Napa River Enhancement, Management and Public Access Plan. The study focused on improving the RCD’s Napa River Hydrologic Model in the lower Napa River area (between the Southern Crossing and the Napa/Solano county line), and applying the model to focus sites of interest.
RCD staff studied No Name Creek near the Napa County Airport, a site recommended for preservation in an early biological resources report. No Name Creek is blocked from Fagan Marsh by a berm and a culvert that allow freshwater flows to leave the Creek, but prohibits tidal inundation from coming upstream. The field work included a complete survey of the creek channel and associated tidal marshlands.
Model results suggest that if lower No Name Creek were opened up to the tidal influence from Fagan Marsh, the resulting inundation would be limited to low-lying areas along the creek and would not be increased by freshwater flooding. Allowing the tides to enter the No Name Creek watershed would greatly enhance the estuarine habitat and increase biological diversity.
The report has been turned in to the City of Napa, the Napa County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, and the Department of Fish and Game for review.
Other hydrologic projects include work on Napa Creek. Over the past two years, RCD staff and trained volunteers have made numerous trips to Napa Creek to measure stream discharge and to collect sediment samples. A new staff gage was installed in March, which will be used to match up water level with stream discharge, creating a rating curve. This is an important task, especially when incorporating the creek into the RCD hydrodynamic model. In addition to discharge measurements, RCD staff and trained volunteers take stream sediment concentrations every time they measure stream discharge. A sediment rating curve will be developed for Napa Creek which will shed light on the relationship between sediment concentration and discharge.
Napa Creek will be the next tributary to be added to the hydrodynamic Napa River model. RCD staff has gathered over 100 channel cross-sections from the confluence of Browns Valley Creek and Redwood Creek (where Napa Creek begins), to the confluence of the Napa River. Rainfall/runoff and hydrodynamic simulations will be run through Napa Creek to evaluate its flooding hazard during large discharge events. If you have any questions about our hydrologic modeling project or would like to become a volunteer, please contact our hydrologist at 707-252-4188.
Stewardship Gets Support from the State
In March of this year the RCD was awarded a grant from the California Department of Conservation (DOC) to support land stewardship and watershed coordination in the Napa River watershed. Land stewardship is an ethic that promotes extensive cooperation in the protection and enhancement of natural resources. Land stewardship concepts allow development of long term watershed planning that is based on the goals and interests of landowners, agencies and other stakeholders in a given watershed system. Planning is done more completely, with all aspects of the natural and human systems considered simultaneously.
The DOC grant began in April and supports Leigh Sharp in the position of a Stewardship Facilitator/Watershed Coordinator. Leigh will work to support and form stewardship groups in the Sulphur Creek, Carneros Creek and Salvador Channel sub-watersheds of the Napa River watershed.
The Carneros Creek and Sulphur Creek watersheds have stewardship groups that meet on a monthly and bi-monthly basis, respectively. Leigh will assist the stewardship groups in a variety of tasks including: identifying stakeholders, facilitating meetings, identifying issues, concerns and opportunities for improvement of the watersheds, coordinating technical assistance, and writing grant proposals to fund resource management plans and restoration projects.
The stewardship groups in both the Carneros and Sulphur Creek watersheds have expressed interest in learning more about their respective watersheds through conducting watershed assessments and developing watershed management plans. Leigh anticipates that landowners interested in creating a stewardship on Salvador Channel will be convening in August.
For additional information on the Stewardship Program or to express an interest in forming a stewardship in your watershed, please contact Leigh Sharp at 252-4188 or leigh@naparcd.org. Activities of the stewardships, including meeting agendas and minutes can be accessed through the RCD website at www.naparcd.org.
Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program
The RCD manages a basin-wide volunteer water quality monitoring program with the help of eight dedicated volunteers. The RCD trains and supplies the monitors with a sampling kit for weekly or bi-weekly sampling. Measurements include water temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and pH. The data can be used to assess the water quality of particular creeks over time. Additional volunteers are currently needed in the Calistoga area. For more information please contact us at 707-252-4188
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