Details

DETAILS ON THE FFF PROGRAM

Vineyard owners and managers enroll in the program by signing up for a series of four educational workshops. The workshops cover all aspects of land management, including existing vineyard management, new vineyard design, creek and river riparian corridor management and restoration, and road repair and maintenance. As they go through the workshops, each farmer will work with the FFF program to complete a Farm Conservation Plan for their property.

	The Farm Conservation Plan inventories and evaluates natural resources and practices on the entire property, not just in the vineyards. This approach assures a comprehensive program to achieve environmental quality and improvement. Following the workshops, the FFF program provides professional one-on-one technical assistance to each landowner/manager to complete the Farm Conservation Plan. The Plan documents all sediment sources and evaluates stream and river riparian corridors and water sources. Various projects such as creek restoration and revegetation, water supply facility retrofit, road repair, and erosion site repair are identified in the Plan as well as changes needed in management practices to produce environmental benefits.

When the Farm Conservation Plan is completed, the site is certified through a third party review of the property and the Plan. Implementation of the Farm Conservation Plan and photo-monitoring of the condition of the property continues with re-certification every 5-7 years. The FFF program continues to work with the owner to cost-share implementation of major projects.

Farm Conservation Plans - A Blueprint for Sustainability
The farmer, working with technical experts, completes a Farm Conservation Plan - a comprehensive inventory and assessment of natural resources, agricultural lands and management practices. The Farm Conservation Plan is a strategy for implementing Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) and guides the improvement of land management practices and the implementation of projects for a specific property. Each Plan is unique, addressing the features and conditions of a particular property.

The Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs)
The protection and enhancement of salmon and trout habitat forms the basis of the Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) and all FFF projects. For example, the fish require cold, high-quality water for all stages of their life in fresh water. Fine sediment from soil erosion is a major contaminant that degrades fish habitat and water quality. The BMPs address soil conservation in all areas of the farm.

Soil Conservation
	Vineyards must be fully winterized with cover crops of dense grass on the entire vineyard floor, and along vineyard roads and tractor turn-arounds. All roads on the property are assessed by a professional as roads are the main source of mud in creeks. Vineyard soil types, slopes, winterization practices and drainage systems, road culverts and ditches, and erosion sites remaining from previous land uses are all inventoried and improvements and repairs specified in the Farm Conservation Plan.

Creek Network
All portions of the creek system on the property are inventoried. Hillside vineyards may have ephemeral creeks lined with oaks or other trees. Ephemeral creeks (also called Class III water courses) typically are steep and only carry water in large storms, but are often sites of soil erosion. The Farm Conservation Plan documents the condition of each creek and identifies the need for erosion repairs or native plant revegetation. Further, the Plan inventories the vineyard drainage system and road system that may affect ephemeral creeks, assesses the potential for soil erosion, and specifies improvements to avoid future erosion.

Water Conservation
Water conservation and agricultural water sources are also addressed in the Farm Conservation Plan. Vineyards have drip irrigation and use less irrigation water than any other agricultural crop and significantly less than urban lawns and gardens. Vineyards that are barely irrigated produce a concentration of juices and flavors, making the fine wines California is known for. The source of water including wells, reservoirs, river and creeks is also evaluated for potential effects on fish habitats.

Limiting Chemical Use
	Chemical use in the vineyard including the method of application, frequency of use, and toxicity of each agricultural chemical to aquatic life are addressed in the BMPs. (photo) Row of flowering plants in vineyard that support beneficial insects and reduce the need for insecticide use.

Restoring and Sustaining Riparian Corridors
Major creek and river channels that can support fish as well as other wildlife, such as song and wading birds, ducks, river otters, raccoons, garter snakes, frogs, toads, deer and many other creatures are a major focus of the Farm Conservation Plan. Of course not all farms have these habitats, but all the land in a drainage basin, or watershed, contributes to the quality of a creek and its habitats. Revegetating hillside creeks and repairing erosion sites and roads on watershed lands is essential to the protection and enhancement of downstream fish habitats and riparian corridors.

For those properties with major creeks or river frontage, restoration of an ecologically-functional riparian corridor is part of the Plan. The creek is evaluated in great detail by an ecologist and hydrologist. The width of the scour channel, riparian corridor, proximity of the vineyard and height of the banks are measured over the stretch of creek or river on the property. The ecologist, working with the farmer, documents plant diversity and distribution as well as infestations of invasive non-native species.

A 10-year restoration and management program is designed for the creek to remove and control invasive plants, replant native species and widen the corridor using revegetation, if needed. The width of the riparian corridor to be restored is defined by the watershed acreage draining to the creek and a scientific method developed for the Russian River, Navarro River, Gualala River and Napa River watersheds.

	Restoration of riparian corridors and creek habitats requires both the initial effort to eradicate invasive species and replant native species, and a long-term management effort by the farmer to continue removal of the invasive plants and irrigate and care for the new native plants. Invasive non-native species are second only to urban sprawl for loss of wildlife habitat in California and removal requires a concerted 5-10 year management effort. Fish Friendly Farmers actively protect and enhance creek habitats by controlling invasive plants and revegetating with natives, reducing erosion of stream banks with native revegetation, re-creating a stream meander corridor and natural processes in the creek, and creating a shaded, cool water habitat for fish.

New Vineyards
New vineyard design is also included in the FFF program. The project site is evaluated for wetlands, all creeks and riparian areas, special habitats, heritage trees, steep slopes and high soil erosion hazards, unstable hillsides, coniferous forest areas and other features. These features are then included in a determination of potential vineyard areas where environmental impacts are avoided. Vineyard development BMPs are extensive to avoid soil erosion and protect creek systems. In many instances, large properties of 800-1,000-acres that were formerly sheep or cattle ranches or logging sites are developed with 100-150 acres of vineyard. Old gullies and failing roads are repaired, reducing sediment delivery to creeks. The forest and other wildlife habitats remain undeveloped while the 100-150-acre vineyard provides an economic return adequate to support the entire 800-1,000 acres.