The California Land Stewardship Institute (CLSI) is working with landowners on a restoration plan for a 5.3 mile stretch of the upper Napa River just downstream from Calistoga. This stretch of the river is highly entrenched, with vertical 20-25 ft. banks, actively eroding and threatening collapse. The same reach is also host to an invasion of non-native plants, providing habitat to sharpshooters that carry Pierce’s Disease (PD). CLSI is raising funds for the project which will take a different approach than downstream projects; a tactic called “managed retreat.”

Rather than grading and engineering the riverfront, managed retreat outlines actions landowners undertake as banks are failing. Property owners manage the land until failure, with critical setbacks defined for retreat. This requires pulling back vineyards, roads and any other development in the defined area. Sprigged willow gets placed at the base of the bank while the mid and upper banks are revegetated with native, riparian trees and plants. Each retreat is generally a semi-circle, scallop-like shape, which minimizes the amount of land affected. Laurel Marcus, executive director of CLSI, describes it as using the power of the river to guide appropriate measures, thus adapting to the ways the river is naturally self-adjusting.

Similar to downstream projects, the first phase of the Upper Napa River Restoration will involve removal and management of invasive plants, including Tree of Heaven and Himalayan blackberry and management of other Pierce’s Disease host plants. CLSI provides ongoing support to landowners, including grant application assistance. Laurel points out that many landowners are certified through CLSI’s Fish Friendly Farming program, one of two third-party certifications the help vintners achieving Napa Green Land certification.