Program Spotlights
- Watershed Explorers Connects Students to the Wetlands...and Beyond!
News & Announcements
- February Rainfall Summary
- Pollinator Habitat Kits Available from Xerces Society
- Save the Date: Earth Day Napa 2022
- Park Rx Ranger Training- April 5
- Welcome to the team, Ali Blodorn!
In Case You Missed It
- Scholarship Applications Due April 1
- NOAA and CDFW Announce Voluntary Drought Initiative
Upcoming Programs
|
|
|
|
Watershed Explorers Connects Students to the Wetlands... and Beyond! |
Wetlands Edge Park in American Canyon is a local environmental sanctuary for humans and wildlife alike. It's also the place that inspired Watershed Explorers, a youth environmental education program recently created by America Canyon Community & Parks Foundation (ACCPF) and Napa RCD's education team.
Watershed Explorers (WE) engages fourth and fifth grade students at American Canyon elementary schools in hands-on learning about healthy ecosystems, water quality, plant and animal lifecycles, human history in the region, and human impacts on our surrounding environment. Students explore these topics through a series of class visits and field trips at Wetlands Edge Park and sites in the upper watershed.
Slated to begin in Spring 2020, the original pilot of WE was abruptly halted by the pandemic after one class presentation. How did we pivot? ACCPF, Napa RCD, and program partners including the City of American Canyon, American Canyon Wastewater Treatment Plant, Napa County Regional Park and Open Space District, and Suscol Intertribal Council collaborated to provide a virtual experience of Watershed Explorers for students. As a result, the Watershed Explorers Google Site was created!
As the education world transitioned into more in-person learning during the 2021-22 school year, Napa RCD drew inspiration from their partnership with ACCPF and worked on modifying WE to enhance our youth stormwater pollution prevention program. Building upon similar themes of watershed exploration while addressing issues of water pollution via class visits and field experiences, Napa RCD aims to offer WE to students throughout Napa County by collaborating closely with ACCPF and other partners such as Napa County Flood Control District, Suscol Intertribal Council, Calistoga and Napa school districts and teachers, along with the partners listed above. We just submitted a proposal for this meaningful education program to the NOAA BWET funding program for activities next school year, keep your fingers crossed!
In the immediate future, ACCPF and partners are beyond excited to ‘re-pilot’ WE with teachers at Napa Junction and Donaldson Way elementary schools in American Canyon in spring 2022.
By combining the dreams, goals, capacities, and efforts of partnering community organizations, WE stands as an example of our community addressing a big need for more experiential, inquiry-based, and outdoor learning for our children.
And don't forget that our friends at ACCPF are hosting an open house this weekend!
Sunday, March 6, 2022
4-6pm
Boys and Girls Club in American Canyon
This is an indoor-outdoor event. For more information about ACCPF and the Community Open House visit www.acparks.org. Hope to see you there!
|
|
|
|
February Rainfall Summary
Paul Blank, Napa RCD Environmental Scientist
|
February brought one day of measurable rainfall to the Napa Valley. Rainfall totals at the County ALERT monitoring stations (napa.onerain.com) were well below average for the month, ranging between 0.0 and 0.08 inches, less than 0.1% of mean annual precipitation. On average, we get 19% of our annual rainfall during the month of February.
So far in Water Year 2021-22 (beginning October 1), we’ve received approximately 70% of our annual rainfall, which is now below the long-term average of 74% for this time of year. Seasonal rainfall totals at the rain gauges range between 18.5 inches (Mt. George) and 35.8 inches (Mt. Veeder).
Historical data from the 100-year Napa State Hospital precipitation record reveal that total February rainfall of less than a quarter inch has occurred five times, three of those in the last five years. In addition, the data show that this has been the driest January-February period on record with 0.63 inches.
|
|
|
|
Xerces Offers Monarch and Pollinator Kits to Working Lands & Public Lands in CA |
Many insect pollinators are declining in California, including bees and butterflies. The western monarch population has declined 95% since the 1980s, likely due to multiple factors including habitat loss and degradation, pesticides, and climate change.
One important step we can take to protect these important animals is to increase the amount of habitat available to these species. To this end, The Xerces Society is offering habitat kits that contain climate-smart native plants to project partners who are willing to provide the time, labor and land to develop habitats that support monarchs and other pollinators in California.
Who can apply for a pollinator kit?
Kits are intended to be used to create or enhance monarch and pollinator habitat on working lands or public lands, with landowner or land manager collaboration. This includes farms, ranches, tribal land, urban farms or gardens, city parks, school gardens, or other public areas. The kits are not intended to be used in home gardens.
The Xerces Society is encouraging private landowners of working lands to partner with their local Resource Conservation District (that's us!) or other technical liaisons on their projects.
|
|
|
|
Save the Date! Earth Day Napa 2022 is
Sunday, April 24, 2022
|
Earth Day Napa is turning 50 - again - and will feature our regular Community Cleanup from 9-11 AM, along with the return of the family-friendly festival at Oxbow Commons, 11 AM - 4 PM!
See you there!
|
|
|
|
ParkRx Napa County Hosts Ranger Training
Tuesday, April 5
10am-12pm
|
Our partners, ParkRx Napa County, are hosting a Virtual Ranger Training! Come learn about your local ParkRx coalition, find out what ParkRx is, how we can help to create stewards of the land, and tools and resources that connect our community to our local parks and open spaces.
|
|
|
|
|
Welcome to the Napa RCD Team, Ali Blodorn |
Meet Ali (Alison) Blodorn, our new Principal Program Manager for our Forestry programs! Ali just joined the team, coming on board on January 31!
Over the last ~15 years Ali has led collaborative research programs across a variety of settings ranging from academia to business marketing. Through these experiences she has developed expertise in project and grant management, partnership development, and staff supervision. She had been wanting to apply her skillset to the conservation space for some time, and this desire was reinforced after she moved to Napa in the fall of 2020 and started getting engaged with the local community. Ali first learned about Napa RCD from viewing our oak plantings while hiking at Skyline Park. Ali started regularly checking our website for job openings, and when she saw the posting for this job she thanked her lucky stars and applied immediately!
At a high level, Ali will be overseeing Napa RCD’s forestry programming and helping to shape the vision and strategy for our continued growth in services. One project that she is currently focusing on is the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity program, funded by the California Department of Conservation, which involves collaborating with neighboring counties to increase our regional capacity to plan and implement projects that will improve forest health and fire resiliency.
Ali says she is incredibly excited to be building relationships with, and learning from, folks in Napa County and the broader region as we collaboratively work to improve the long-term health of our forests. One specific focus area that particularly excites her is the opportunity to support education and workforce development programs that will help to empower folks from all backgrounds to be stewards of our forests.
In her free time, Ali enjoys hiking, camping, volunteering at Little Moon Farm, eating as much local produce as possible, and learning about all things climate-related (a couple of her favorite podcasts are How to Save a Planet and A Matter of Degrees).
When asked to share one fun fact about her, Ali mentioned that she grew up in a solar powered house that her parents built in a remote area of central California. She thought it was super cool as a kid, and even outfitted her dollhouse with solar powered lights for her school science fair!
We love an enthusiastic former science fair participant, and we are excited to bring you further into the fold! Welcome to the team, Ali!
|
|
|
|
Napa RCD Scholarship for Emerging Environmental Leaders
Accepting Applications Until April 1, 2022
|
Napa RCD's Scholarship celebrates the contributions of young leaders who have partnered with us to care for Napa County’s land, water, soil, wildlife, and people.
Scholarship awards are open to students graduating from any high school, high school equivalent, or GED program in Napa County. Priority consideration will be given to students who have actively participated in Napa RCD programs or activities beyond required classroom presentations and field trips.
|
Special Announcement!
Thanks to a generous donation from the Freed Family Fund of Napa Valley Community Foundation, FIVE $1,000 awards will be granted during the 2021-22 school year. Deadline to apply is 11pm on April 1, 2022.
For more information and to apply, please
|
|
|
|
NOAA and CA Dept of Fish and Wildlife Announce CA Voluntary Drought Initiative |
The ongoing drought has affected drinking water supplies, agriculture, municipal, and industrial supply and resulted in critically low instream flows that have severely impacted native fisheries. NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (CDFW) status and trend monitoring show that steelhead populations in the Napa River are at a high risk of extinction and their abundance continues to decline.
Low instream flows last summer likely led to poor survival of juvenile steelhead and increased their risk of extinction. The precipitation in October and November improved streamflow in the Napa River; however, the watershed remains under exceptional drought conditions and the upcoming spring is expected to be drier than normal.
Your assistance can increase the survival of the steelhead population in the Napa River watershed despite ongoing drought conditions. NOAA and CDFW invite you to partner with them and join the California Voluntary Drought Initiative to help protect juvenile steelhead next spring and summer.
Actions included in the Voluntary Drought Initiative include:
1. implementing water conservation strategies that improve streamflow;
2. providing instream flows necessary for fish survival and persistence;
3. monitoring and evaluating the success of these measures;
4. allowing access for our fish rescue and relocation effort; and
5. enhancing floodplain inundation and groundwater recharge.
|
|
|
|
Did you know that we have a separate email list for volunteers? |
|
|
|
|
Help support Napa RCD - Donate Today!
|
|
Napa County Resource Conservation District | 707-252-4189 | NapaRCD.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
