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Napa Green Certified Land

A cover crop of fescue grass and wild mustard helps keep soils stabilized during heavy rains or flooding and mitigates soil moisture. Napa Green Certified Land is a voluntary program for Napa Valley vintners, grape growers and other agricultural land owners that enhances the watershed and restores habitat with sustainable agriculture practices. Approximately 22,000 acres are enrolled in the program (11,350 acres of this is vineyard land) and more than 9,200 acres are certified, with thousands more about to receive official certification. A majority (90%) of the Napa River watershed is in private ownership and public/private partnerships as well as programs like Napa Green are vital to our community.

Goals and Objectives

·         Ensure compliance with all local, state and federal environmental regulations including the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, California Department of Fish and Game Code, and County Conservation Regulations.

·         Implement Beneficial Management Practices and promote sustainable agriculture and ecosystems.

·         Improve water quality and aquatic habitat.

·         Implement restoration and soil erosion control projects.

·         Expand community awareness of responsible management practices by grape growers.

Background
Napa Green certification is received by enrolling in the Fish Friendly Farming program, which has been in use in the Russian River, Navarro and Gualala watersheds since 1999. Development of Napa Green for the Napa watershed was initiated by Napa Valley's agricultural community and involved an 18-month collaborative effort between local vintners and growers and representatives from government agencies and environmental organizations. The result of this effort was the creation of a workbook of Beneficial Management Practices (BMP's) with a farm plan template. The work book and accompanying workshops are the centerpiece of the program and assist landowners in evaluating natural features on their farms, assessing current management practices, and implementing improved practices.

Certification
A final step of Napa Green is certification of the farm conservation plan by the National Marine Fisheries Service, Department of Pesticide Regulation, and the Regional Water Quality Control Board. The grower, in conjunction with the program technical director, presents the farm plan to the certification team. The certification team visits the farm and discusses the site and farm plan implementation timeline with the grower. Each farm plan is certified based on completeness and accuracy in describing the resources and current practices of the farm, the needed BMP's, and the implementation timeline. Once certified, the grower receives a letter from each of the certifying agencies which recognizes the grower's commitment to improve water quality and habitat values.