January 27, 2015 By Mathew Swain Existing compliance may not be sufficient After 13 years of deliberation and drafting, the new Industrial General Stormwater Permit takes effect July 1. The new permit requires major changes in the way that businesses engaged in industrial activities plan for, monitor and control pollution in rainwater runoff. Companies should […]
Read MoreCategory: Viticulture not food agriculture Impacts
Climate Change Impacts on Vineyards, Wildlife Habitat & Natural Resources
April 29, 2013 by Renata Brillinger A study entitled Climate Change, Wine, and Conservation published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences predicts that by 2050 the climate change impacts on the viability of wine grape production will be substantial and varied by geographic region. While many such projections focus primarily on the impacts on […]
Read MoreNMFS Letters on Riparian and Well Issues for Sonoma County
Hi folks: These letters are important insofar as they are from the National Marine Fisheries Service and speak to the rules the County relies upon to govern development and the impacts of those rules in their land use decisions with respect to riparian vegetation and waterways. The letters reinforce what is needed in the County […]
Read MoreNMFS Comment Letters on Sonoma County Land Use Practice
To All, These attached letters are important insofar as they are from the National Marine Fisheries Service and speak to the rules Sonoma County relies upon to govern development and the impacts of those rules in their land use decisions with respect to riparian vegetation and waterways. The letters reinforce what is needed in the […]
Read MoreDunne on Wine: Water used to make wine becomes issue during drought
By Mike Dunne – Special to The Bee October 10, 2014 If you have one of those “Save Water Drink Wine” bumper stickers on your car, you might want to rip it off. And not only because the wit is so lame. The advice is erroneous. In this time of drought, a bumper sticker urging […]
Read MoreInvitation by Interviewee to See Russian River Movie
Come see and support this beautiful movie. Ok, I’m a bit biased, but this is indeed beautifully produced and filmed – and it is very important and timely. And, yes, there are a number of fabulous interviews with a wide range of water and river people. Thanks! David Keller
Read MoreTHE RUSSIAN RIVER: ALL RIVERS Screenings
To All, Don McEnhill, Executive Director of Russian Riverkeeper is a featured interview in: THE RUSSIAN RIVER: ALL RIVERS – THE VALUE OF AN AMERICAN WATERSHED “The time of using greed to justify degrading our environment is over.” “We need to get very honest with the amount of water we have in the worst year. […]
Read MoreEnvironmental Groups’ Lawsuit could Upend Sonoma County Vineyard Policies
By GUY KOVNER THE PRESS DEMOCRAT June 13, 2014 Three environmental groups are challenging Sonoma County’s approval of a 54-acre Annapolis vineyard in a case that reflects long-standing conflict over expansion of the county’s $600 million a year grape industry. If the lawsuit were to succeed, it would wipe out the county’s vineyard development law, […]
Read MoreArtesa Vineyards Planned Near Annapolis Shelved
Robert Digitales, Press Democrat June 3, 2014 The decision was hailed by environmentalists, who last year persuaded a Sonoma County judge to rule that the vineyard project’s environmental studies were flawed. “For us and the forest, it’s great news,” Friends of the Gualala River President Chris Poehlmann said of the winery’s decision. Artesa spokesman Sam […]
Read MoreVineyard Owners Worried about Potential Water Restrictions
By MATT BROWN THE PRESS DEMOCRAT January 22, 2014, 7:57 PM If the debilitating drought continues, farmers and ranchers with rights to California’s creeks, rivers and lakes may be ordered to stop drawing the water that is vital to agricultural operations. That is the message Gov. Jerry Brown sent last week in his emergency drought […]
Read MoreJudge Sends Financier’s Winery Project Back to Sonoma County Supervisors
Sonoma County supervisors will re-open the public hearing on a wealthy financier’s boutique winery after project opponents complained Supervisor Shirlee Zane had improper communication with the developer before it was approved. A use permit for the 10,000-case winery proposed for the hills north of Santa Rosa by Goldman Sachs partner Henry Cornell was issued in […]
Read MoreSediment Release in Tributary of Salmon Creek Results in $38,000 in Costs and Penalties to Vineyard Developer
January 14, 2014 | Santa Rosa, CA Released by: District Attorney District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced today that defendant Stephen Kistler has resolved a civil case with the District Attorney’s Office for a violation of Fish and Game Code section 5650.1, prohibiting the release of potentially harmful materials into waterways. District Attorney Ravitch stated: “Land […]
Read MoreDrought and CEQA
To All: As I’m sure most if not all of you are aware, Governor Brown recently made his drought emergency declaration. While there are many positive aspects of the declaration – raising awareness of the drought, added pressure for reduced water usage, release of funds to address the drought, etc. – there are also some […]
Read MoreThe Paul Hobbs Empire Strikes Back
by Shepherd Bliss Posted on November 29, 2013 by dandelionsalad The Watertrough Children’s Alliance (WCA)–mainly mothers with students at schools near where yet another apple orchard is being converted into a chemical vineyard–filed a lawsuit on the afternoon of Nov. 25 against the Paul Hobbs Winery. The next day Hobbs struck back with a press […]
Read MoreCitizen Group Sues Paul Hobbs
By PAUL PAYNE THE PRESS DEMOCRAT November 26, 2013 A citizens group is suing Sebastopol winemaker Paul Hobbs and Sonoma County over a 48-acre vineyard conversion project it says was approved in violation of state environmental laws. Watertrough Children’s Alliance alleges in court papers filed Monday that Agricultural Commissioner Tony Linegar erred in issuing a permit June […]
Read MoreA Fight Over Vineyards Pits Redwoods Against Red Wine
by Alastair Bland October 18, 2013 3:53 PM Environmental groups are fighting to stop the leveling of 154 acres of coastal redwoods and Douglas firs to make way for grapevines. Courtesy Friends of the Gualala River In the California wine mecca of Sonoma County, climate change is pitting redwood lovers against red wine lovers. This […]
Read MoreCDFW Comments on Maintaining Instream Flows
To All, In case you have not seen. California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Comments on Maintaining In-Stream Flows in Northern California Coastal streams. Comments are in response to the Supplemental Environmental document (SED), associated with AB 2121, drafted by the State Water Resources Control Board. See CDFW Comments here: CF&W Response Instream Flows […]
Read MoreWildlife Activity Along Creek Corridors
From the Practical Winery & Vineyard Journal BY Jodi Hilty and Adina Merenlender, Dept. of Environmental Science, Policy, & Management, University of California, Berkeley Learning how to manage agro-ecosystems to conserve natural resources and wildlife is an ongoing challenge for agriculture the world over. Agro-ecology focuses on the farm, where farming practices, land management, and restoration […]
Read MoreSonoma County Sees Surge in New Vineyard Projects
CATHY BUSSEWITZ THE PRESS DEMOCRAT, June 2, 2013 Wineries and vineyard owners have filed a flurry of applications to plant new vineyards and replace older vines in Sonoma County, even as the suitable land in the region has become more scarce. The rush to plant comes as the California wine industry is faced with aging […]
Read MoreFarmers work to protect grapes, river levels
Steve Adler, April 24, 2013 Winegrape growers within the Russian River watershed came through the first night of freezing temperatures with flying colors last week, as their sprinkler diversions for frost protection of vulnerable spring vine growth resulted in very little drop in river flow levels. The issue involves farmers in Mendocino and Sonoma counties, […]
Read MoreCensus will Guide and Improve Water Sustainability Efforts
Contact: Jessica Kershaw (DOI), Jon Campbell (USGS), 04/03/2013 WASHINGTON, DC – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today released a report to Congress on the progress of the National Water Census, which is being developed at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to help the nation address its critical water needs. “This update to the National […]
Read MoreConventional Alcohol Farms are Hazardous to Your Health
By David Franklin The conventional wine industry has poisoned our rivers, wiped out wild species, reshaped mountains, caused wells to run dry, peppered our ag lands with chemicals that are poisoning us and our children and are now getting ready to hack down our forests for profit while the planet roasts from deforestation and climate […]
Read MoreRegarding PD Story on Frost Regs Ruling
Brett – thanks for the lead. I just saw the Ukiah DJ story (reprinted below). You should also contact Barbara Evoy at the SWRCB for her comments on this ruling. Who is doing the story for the PD? General comments, on background: (my comments for publication follow below): I will read the ruling and have […]
Read MoreMendocino County Judge Tosses Out State’s Frost-protection Rules
GLENDA ANDERSON & CATHY BUSSEWITZ THE PRESS DEMOCRAT September 26, 2012 A Mendocino County judge on Wednesday overturned controversial state water rules designed to regulate how grape growers in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties divert water from the Russian River. Judge Ann Moorman of the Superior Court of Mendocino County declared the law to be “constitutionally […]
Read MoreMendocino County Judge Invalidates State’s Frost Protection Regulations
Ukiah Daily Journal Staff September 9, 2012 Ukiah Daily Journal Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Ann Moorman ruled in favor of a group of local landowners who sued the California State Water Resources Control Board over new regulations affecting Russian River water used for frost protection in local vineyards. Moorman said that she agreed with […]
Read MoreStudy Showing Salmonid Risk in Mediterranean Climate
Thank heavens for thesis’s. No one else would study this (ask this question), or come up with such a conclusion. Now, we just have to hang on to our educational system. Thanks Brock. Hello, Ted Grantham, who recently finished his PhD in my lab, wrote the attached newly published paper based on his thesis research […]
Read MoreWhy vineyards are extirpating our salmonids
Why vineyards are extirpating our salmonids. Jim Subject: Steelhead Trout Lose Out–Comments of Jim Doerksen in Opposition to the Response by the State Water Board, etc. The first item is a Press Release by U.C. Berkeley titled “Steelhead Trout Lose Out When Water is Low in Wine Country”. This press release is a synopsis of the attached second […]
Read MoreLawsuit Filed to Stop Clearcutting of Redwoods for Sonoma County Vineyard
SANTA ROSA, California — Conservation groups filed a lawsuit today challenging a controversial proposal by a Spanish corporation to clearcut 154 acres of redwood forest to plant wine grapes in northwestern Sonoma County. The Sierra Club’s Redwood Chapter, the Center for Biological Diversity and Friends of the Gualala River sued the California Department of Forestry […]
Read MoreArtesa’s Hired Gun
Will Parrish on May 2, 2012 Artesa of Sonoma, a subsidiary of Spanish wine giant Codorniu, has a public image crisis on its hands, and on a scale few wine companies have ever encountered. Last year, the company received a spate of national media coverage concerning its plan to carry out the largest forest-to-vineyard conversion […]
Read MoreIn Response to “Steelhead Trout Lose Out…”
Steelhead Trout Lose Out (49-15-07) Comments of Jim Doerksen in Opposition to the Response by the SWRCB, etc. Robert. The first item is a Press Release by U.C. Berkeley titled “Steelhead Trout Lose Out When Water is Low in Wine Country”. This press release is a synopsis of the attached second item which is a […]
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