Sarah Yang, Media Relations | May 7, 2012 The competition between farmers and fish for precious water in California is intensifying in wine country, suggests a new study by biologists at the University of California, Berkeley. The findings, published in the May issue of the journal Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, link higher death […]
Read MoreCategory: Viticulture not food agriculture Impacts
State OKs Forest-to-vineyard Plan in Sonoma County
Brett Wilkison, The Press Democrat, May 8, 2012 The 324-acre site for a forestland to vineyard project stretches from the grass area to the redwood/ fir stand in the background at Artesa Winery’s proposed Fairfax Estate on the outskirts of Annapolis. State forestry officials on Tuesday approved a controversial timber-to-vineyard conversion project in northwest Sonoma […]
Read MoreFish and Game moving forward with frost protection
Fish and Game moving forward with frost protection Vineyard owners receive letters reminding them to comply despite court action By JUSTINE FREDERIKSEN Updated: 03/30/2012 PDT Though proposed frost protection regulations have been put on hold, landowners along the Russian River received letters from the California Department of Fish and Game reminding them of their need […]
Read MoreComments on Low Dose Pesticide Risks
To All, Subject: [chescience] EHN/YaleEnviro360: Excellent summary of seminal Vandenberg/Colborn/Hayes/vomSaal/Myers paper on low-dose risks While this is centered on human health it is safe to assume there are similar impacts on the balance of the food chain. Who is looking? T Yarish Friends: the paper reviewed here by Vandenberg et al is a truly critical […]
Read MoreA Report from the Soil and Water Conservation Society
Dear Interested public: One of the objectives of the growing community with respect to changes to Vineyard and Erosion and Sediment Control Ordinance (VESCO) is to satisfy conditions of Reg’l Board’s Irrigated Lands waiver. Although the condition of our impaired water bodies and fisheries are the public’s business, the growers do not want the public […]
Read MoreThe Department of Terroir Security Website
I came across this interesting website–The Department of Terroir Security–that seems to focus on the rampant increase of vineyards/wineries everywhere and the environmental/social impacts. Who are those guys? http://terroirsecurity.com/?p=595 Larry
Read MoreProtecting Soils in Sonoma: A Moratorium on Hillside Vineyard Development
The Department of Terroir Security On January 31, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors imposed a four-month moratorium on the development of vineyards on forested slopes and hilltops. This halt on new vines is meant to buy the County time to update the existing regulations that allow for some development on hillsides. The existing Vineyard […]
Read MoreJudge postpones frost protection rules for Russian River growers
CATHY BUSSEWITZ THE PRESS DEMOCRAT February 2, 2012 A Mendocino County judge on Thursday postponed the state’s new rules on frost protection until grape growers who filed a lawsuit challenging the rules have their day in court. Rudy and Linda Light, who own a small family vineyard in Redwood Valley on a tributary to the […]
Read MoreSupport Tree Protection in Sonoma County, Tues., Jan. 31, 9 am
Forest Supporters, This Tuesday, January 31, at 9 am, please come to support a County “freeze” on any new vineyard and orchard development in Sonoma County until June 1st of this year. At that time, VESCO (Vineyard Erosion and Sediment Control Ordinance) will be updated to incorporate tree removal protection language. This will be held in the Supervisors’ […]
Read MoreNapa growers give up land for salmon
TRACIE CONE Associated Press Along one of the San Francisco Bay’s most valuable watersheds, healthy salmon runs will soon coexist, at last, with cabernet sauvignon. The ambitious project to halt erosion in the heart of California’s premiere winegrowing region includes 40 landowners voluntarily giving up 135 acres of some of the most prized farmland in […]
Read MoreTwo Very Different Gualala River Watershed Groups
Dear Friends of the Gualala River,People sometimes confuse Friends of the Gualala River (FoGR) and Gualala River Watershed Council (GRWC) – two very different organizations. Here’s a comparison. Friends of the Gualala River (FoGR) GualalaRiver.org Gualala River Watershed Council (GRWC) GRWC.info FoGR is a leader in environmental advocacy and action dedicated to protection and recovery […]
Read MoreChopping Down Redwoods to Make Wine
Keith Goetzman November 14, 2011 Two California vintners want to cut down 2,000 acres of redwood trees and replace them with vineyards in the largest woodland-to-vineyard conversion in California’s history. Do I need to explain what conservationists think of this? Under the proposal, reported by the Los Angeles Times and later tipped by High Country […]
Read MoreAction Letter to Protect Our Waterways from Pesticides
To All, Pesticides in our waters, often overlooked, are a significant threat to wildlife and human health. Right now chemical and agribusiness lobbyists are trying to persuade Congress to gut the Clean Water Act and allow unregulated pesticide application. You can help turn back this toxic tide. Industry lobbyists are pushing a radical revision of our […]
Read MoreLetter to Supervisor: Hobbs is Not One Bad Apple
October 27, 2011 Supervisor Efren Carrillo Board of Supervisors 575 Administration Dr. Rm. 100A Santa Rosa CA 95403 RE: Paul Hobbs, Henry Cornell, and the Public Trust Dear Efren, Many thanks for your recent candid and accurate public comments concerning Paul Hobbs’ desecration of Highway 116 corridor trees and beauty. To many Sonoma County residents, […]
Read MoreGUEST OPINION: Clearing of trees exposes loopholes in county oversight
Trees were removed from a parcel on Highway 116 north of Sebastopol last week, triggering outrage from some neighbors and at least one county supervisor. Bulldozers scraped the trees off another parcel on Highway 116 north of Sebastopol last week for another vineyard. Supervisor Efren Carrillo has expressed outrage at this flouting of environmental rules […]
Read MoreOne Bad Apple…
by Efren Carrillo In Sonoma County, most farmers and vineyard owners take the time, and incur the expense, to have their projects properly vetted by state and local regulators. This protects our community and environment, their interests, and ensures sustainability – which is a cornerstone of what makes Sonoma County special. Unfortunately, the actions of […]
Read MoreWinemaking
October 02, 2011 | Derrick Schneider, Special to The Chronicle “Conserve water, drink wine,” quips a common bumper sticker. If only that were true. Making a gallon of California wine, by various estimates, requires anywhere from a few dozen gallons of water to a few hundred. Most of that water goes toward irrigation. But some […]
Read MoreHydrologic Impacts of Small-Scale Instream Diversions for Frost and Heat Protection in the California Wine Country
Matthew J. Deitch,a* G. Mathias Kondolfb and Adina M. Merenlender a Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA, b Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA ABSTRACT Though many river studies have documented the impacts of large water projects on stream hydrology, few […]
Read MoreThe Real Frost Protection Conspiracy
by Will Parrish on Sep 28th, 2011 The primary mandate of the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB), a division of the California Environmental Protection Agency, is to ensure adequate water for California’s fish populations. Its actual function, however, has proved to be altogether different. In recent decades, the SWRCB has presided over the […]
Read MoreFrost-proof wine freezing out fish
Op-ed, Sonoma Index-Tribune By Lloyd G. Carter Do not expect the State Water Resources Control Board’s recently adopted frost prevention self-monitoring program to halt the Russian River fishery’s slow slide toward extinction. If anything, the new regulations may hasten extinction, given the wine-growing industry’s practice of virtually drying up the river on occasion. Almost everybody […]
Read MoreRWB Requests Information for Developing Plan for Irrigated Lands
To All, This email is being sent on behalf of Catherine Kuhlman, Executive Officer of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Water Board). Regional Water Board staff is developing a Water Quality Compliance Program for Discharges from Irrigated Lands in the North Coast Region (Program). More information on the Program is available online […]
Read MoreA Comparison of Two Different Gualala Watershed Groups
To All, A comparison of Friends of the Gualala River and Gualala River Watershed Council Two very different organizations Friends of the Gualala River (FoGR) GualalaRiver.org Gualala River Watershed Council (GRWC) GRWC.info FoGR is a leader in environmental advocacy and action dedicated to protection and recovery of the Gualala River and its watershed, defending against threats like: • industrial water diversion and […]
Read MoreBattling Mono
By Alastair Bland Over 90 percent of our cultivated land is vineyards, causing cries of ‘monoculture.’ But what is monoculture, and why is it such a bad thing? In 1974, growing plums was still a viable means of making a living in Sonoma County, but farmer Lou Preston foresaw a better way to harvest an […]
Read MoreState water board adopts Russian River frost plan
KENT PORTER/BRETT WILKISON THE PRESS DEMOCRAT September 20, 2011 State water regulators Tuesday approved a sweeping set of rules to govern how vineyard and orchard operators in the Russian River watershed use water to protect crops from springtime frost. The rules are meant to safeguard beleaguered salmon and steelhead populations and could affect hundreds of […]
Read MoreThe Great Thirst & The North Coast
Posted By Will Parrish On September 7, 2011 Capital is mired in its greatest slump since the 1930s. The ecological fabric that sustains life throughout much of the world is being brutally eradicated; around 200 species go extinct every day, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. In a saner system, these dire circumstances might […]
Read MoreFrost-pond bill passes; regulators float frost-water rule
By Jeff Quackenbush, Business Journal Staff Reporter The Legislature passed a bill by two North Coast state assemblymen that would streamline permitting of small irrigation ponds that could be tapped for frost prevention, rather than streams deemed habitat for protected fish. Meanwhile, state water regulators released the latest revision to a Russian River basin frost-water regulation […]
Read MoreRedwoods versus red wine
The redwood tree and the wine grapevine are both iconic in Northern California. Two wineries are petitioning the state to let them clear redwoods and Douglas firs to make room for new Pinot Noir vineyards.Environmentalists want the trees protected. Not surprisingly, U.S. winemakers are seeking to capitalize on the public’s renewed interest and hedge their […]
Read MoreGrapevines or Redwoods?
I thought you might be interested. Now there are blogs discussing western Sonoma County in the LA Times. Have a glorious summer week, Rue ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dailydish/2011/08/grapevines-or-redwoods.html Daily Dish The inside scoop on food in Los Angeles Grapevines or redwoods? Sonoma County may have to choose August 25, 2011 | 10:31 am The Pacific coast of […]
Read MoreBig Wine & Global Warming
by Darwin Bond-Graham on Jul 21st, 2011 Mendocino County’s wineries have been among the most aggressive in branding themselves, and the rest of the haute alcohol industry, as ecologically sustainable. They’ve been successful enough so far that the ubiquitous vineyards dotting hillsides and carpeting valley floors, and the enormous stocks of fine vino lining store […]
Read MoreJoin Call About Toxic Chemicals that Disrupt Hormones
Please join us on Wednesday, August 24th for a one hour discussion with environmental biologist Dr. Frances Solomon. Dr. Solomon has more than 25 years of experience in state and local environmental agencies, focusing on the biological impacts of toxic water pollutants, pollution prevention and control, and cleanup of contaminated sites. Join this call to learn more about: […]
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