Dear Editor,
From time to time new and innovative ideas emerge from what seems to be a hopeless morass of old ideas and methods.
I have been closely involved with a relatively new organization that was created and grew quickly over the past several months. The Napa Valley Land Stewards Alliance (NVLSA) was formed by a group of small landowners primarily from the unincorporated areas of Napa County. We came together originally as a reaction to the proposed Stream Setback Ordinance currently before the Board of Supervisors, but it looks like we are here to stay. There doesn't seem to be an end in sight to the movement against rural landowners.
As the Stream Setback Ordinance proposal moved through its phases of drafting, debate, and redrafting it became clear that the process was continuing in the same tired fashion that these things have been done in the past. It was a forgone conclusion that the way to deal with the health of the Napa River was through heavy-handed regulation.
Prior to the NVLSA and individual landowners passionately opposing the same old methods and lack of original thinking, the struggle had been within the familiar triad of agriculture, environmentalists, and political interests.
It soon became clear that the proposed legislation was causing a great deal of polarization and animosity among the interested parties. In response to pressure and complaints, the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors along with County Staff, have been proposing a variety of exemptions and alterations in an attempt to satisfy the concerns of the grape growers, homeowners and landowners that would bear the burden of draconian limits placed on the use of their property. The result has been a wildly complex and frankly, unfair set of proposals.
We are already the most regulated county in the state. As regulations climb, so does non-compliance. Napa County is lacking the resources to effectively enforce even the current regulations. Given the current budget considerations it doesn't seem realistic to pile on a maze of administrative procedures and an even larger enforcement burden.
The NVLSA is committed to the principle that the landowners that live and work within the watershed areas are best positioned to care for this precious resource. What we discovered is that there is a lack of information, techniques, and motivation to encourage the Stewards of our watershed lands to embrace their responsibility to the environment as opposed to promoting the bitterness, resentment and division that more regulation brings with it. We further believe that caring for the environment and reasonable use of our land are not mutually exclusive concepts.
After understanding the issues and arguments, members of the NVLSA have applied some truly original thinking to develop the framework for an educational alternative to the current ordinance proposals. This proposal is known as STEWARD, an acronym for Successful Techniques for Enhancing Water And Riparian Development.
In a nutshell, under the STEWARD proposal, permit applicants proposing to conduct earth-disturbing activities near defined waterways or on hillsides would be required to complete an instructional course designed with the cooperation of:
Napa College
The Resource Conservation District
Environmentalist Organizations
The Watershed Information Center
California Department of Forestry
California Department of Fish and Game
Course goals would focus on educating applicants on the most current and effective methods for minimizing any disturbance to the watershed as well as motivating Land Stewards to conduct appropriate restoration projects. By incorporating peer review and observing successes and failures of other projects we believe that the vast majority of landowners will respond in a way that will not only enhance the watershed areas, but will enhance the utility, value and beauty of their own properties. If the landowners are educated and updated on occasion, better environmental practices will become a way of day to day life and not just applied during a specified project.
To date, we have been encouraged by the response that we have received by many members of our community to this concept. Members of The Board of Supervisors, agricultural interests, environmentalists, and homeowners have expressed a strong interest in exploring this option.
If anyone would like more information about the NVLSA or the STEWARD proposal, please call 707-255-9898 send an email to NVLSA.
Mike Rodrigues
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