Anderson Valley Land Trust is excited to share with the community these important upcoming events. We look forward to seeing you there:
Climate Resiliency Workshop, March 23rd, 2024
Is Fire the Right Tool for Your Job, March 28th, 2024
Climate Resiliency Workshop
Saturday March 23, 9:30-4pm
Anderson Valley Grange
This workshop's goal is to build support for climate beneficial activities and encourage private and public investment into our land stewardship activities, covering forests, range, and agricultural lands.
Why you should be there:
Learn climate beneficial actions you can implement in your forests, agricultural and rangelands
Hear from professionals and other landowners who have implemented projects and practices
Learn how to position yourself to better access the carbon market
Meet community organizations and discover partnership opportunities
Join us, and learn how you can make a difference on your land and in your community.
Click here for more information and to register
Or scan the QR code on the flyer below.
Mendocino County Resource Conservation District (MCRCD) is spearheading this project in collaboration with other local organizations including AVLT. This project is funded by the Environmental Defense Fund.
The goal of this project is to bolster community-driven stewardship efforts that enhance climate benefits and ecosystem resilience across the Navarro Watershed.This workshop is 2 of 3 in this series.
Greetings - hope your harvests this fall have been successful! Thank you for your tremendous support for the Anderson Valley Resilient Lands Symposium. Please join us for at the Anderson Valley Grange on Saturday November 11th, 8:30 am-12:30 for is an important community meeting to build a Climate Resilient Navarro River watershed together.
For More Info - MCRCD web page: https://mcrcd.org/project/building-climate-resilience-in-the-navarro-river-watershed
Anderson Valley Land Trust
This event is free. Please bring your own lunch and, to help us plan, register at Eventbrite. Thanks! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/living-with-wildfire-in-anderson-valley-tickets-511350572327
Snapshot Cal Coast
Pisaster ochraceus and tidepool diversity. Pillar Point, San Mateo County, CA
Help document California's incredible coastal biodiversity!
Snapshot Cal Coast 2022 is June 13th-July 4th!
Snapshot Cal Coast is an annual California statewide community science effort that encourages people to make and share observations of plants, animals, and seaweeds along the California coast using the iNaturalist app. Led by the California Academy of Sciences with support from the California Ocean Protection Council, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the MPA (Marine Protected Area) Collaborative Network, and an array of other partners, we are creating a valuable snapshot in time of where species are located along our coast.
For information go to:
Faulkner County Park Interpretive Hike - Trip Report by
Gregory Giusti
We had a perfect Anderson Valley spring day for a hike on the trails through Faulkner County Park on May 15. The afternoon was organized and led by AVLT Board member Steve Woods, with our special guest and forest ecology expert, Greg Giusti, (UC Advisor Forest & Wildlands Ecology Advisor- emeritus). It was so kind of Greg to travel from Kelseyville with his wife on a Sunday afternoon to Boonville to share his knowledge and enthusiasm about redwood ecology and forest management.
Our group hiked the loop through the redwoods, and then continued across the road and on the trail through the oak/fir/tan oak forest. We enjoyed an afternoon of shared knowledge about redwood trees, starting with their ancient history, their rarity in the world now, and redwood ecology and forest ecosystems. It’s amazing how much more you see when on a hike with such knowledgeable leaders! For example, appreciating the diversity of plants in the understory, including ferns, huckleberry, azalea, calypso orchids and trillium and seeing the many “nooks and crannies” that provide excellent wildlife habitat for birds, bats and other small mammals.
Some things we saw were not as wonderful, including the many large redwood trees marked for removal by PG&E. AVLT Board member Steve Wood, as a nearby neighbor to the park, has been following the discussions with PG&E and sharing information. We’ll be paying attention to updates and hoping that there’s another way to address wildfire concerns without destruction of significant trees in this special place. Supervisor Ted Williams joined our hike and is involved in discussions to help with a good outcome for the park.
https://www.mendocinocounty.org/government/parks/mendocino-county-park-locations/faulkner-park
Promoting Sustainable Agriculture
Though AVLT’s primary focus is Anderson Valley and the Navarro River watershed, we are also a member of the proactive Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation committee (SALC) in Mendocino County. The group began in 2016 as a result of Mendocino County’s receipt of a grant from the CA Department of Conservation, which was administered by the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District (MCRCD). It was designed to research how to help protect Mendocino County farm and rangelands from conversion to non-agricultural uses, create a resilient agricultural community, and promote climate-beneficial agricultural practices. A mapping and assessment of farm and rangelands at risk of conversion was conducted with recommendations for policies and actions that could be undertaken by the County and community partners to conserve agricultural land resources.
The CA State program <www.conservation.ca.gov/dlrp/grant-programs/SALCP> invests in agricultural land conservation with revenue from the California Climate Investments (CCI) Fund. This fund is derived from cap-and-trade auctions that are administered by the California Air Resources Board. The funds are available for projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions while providing additional benefits for communities.
The primary goal of the Mendocino County SALC committee is to conserve farm, ranch, and natural resource lands throughout Mendocino County while encouraging responsible and balanced development by:
• Raising awareness among Mendocino County communities about how agricultural land contributes to the economy, ecosystem, and quality of life;
• Encouraging a county planning process that includes the use of conservation tools such as conservation easements, tax incentives, urban growth boundaries, zoning, and ag mitigation programs to conserve agricultural land; and
• Increasing communication and collaboration with diverse stakeholders and decision makers.
The Mendocino County SALC group meets monthly and is composed of a wide variety of representatives from the MCRCD; Mendocino Local Agency Formation Commission; USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service; Mendocino County Farm Bureau; Mendocino County Board of Supervisors; the Planning Commission; Ag Commissioner; farm and ranch owners; UC Cooperative Extension; and Anderson Valley, Inland, and Mendocino land trusts.
In 2019, the group initiated a successful second grant for the County, also administered by MCRCD, that builds on the research gleaned from the original grant. The current grant objectives include a growth management plan for the County that acknowledges the value of important farm and ranchland and includes the adoption of reasonable urban growth boundaries. It will develop an agricultural component for a future countywide County Climate Action Plan (CAP); the scaling up of a Carbon Farm Plan and Soil Health program; and increase landowner participation in the Williamson Act and conservation easements. A critical component of the work plan is coalition building and features an educational outreach campaign aimed at raising community awareness about farm and rangeland values and the tools and strategies available to protect important agricultural land from conversion to residential or commercial use.
With the advent of COVID 19, many of the goals of SALC, such as encouragement of a vibrant and diverse local economy, the production of local food, and the preservation of rural character, cultural heritage, and quality of life, have become even more imperative. The committee aims to provide county residents, landowners, business owners, and County officials with clear and concise information to allow for responsible and balanced development while conserving agricultural values and natural resources. By joining the SALC group AVLT hopes to protect more farm and ranch land in Anderson Valley. For more information about their recent Williamson Act webinars and the upcoming Conservation Easement webinars, go to https://mcrcd.org/project/mendocino-county-sustainable-agricultural-lands-strategy-program or send an email to AVLT at avlt@mcn.org.
To see a pdf (Power Point) summary of this Zoom Outing by Patrick Miller click here.
Dear Friends,
In January I’ll be giving two free Zoom talks, "The Amazing Manzanita and All Her Relations" and “Who’s Who Among the Oaks.” Click HERE to learn about them and/or register. Please spread the word to friends and organizations!
Please consider giving signed copies of the new and improved sixth printing of Secrets of the Oak Woodlands: Plants and Animals among the Oaks. To keep up with new information, I have made updates several times since the first printing in 2014, and have been remiss in telling you about them. (I offer a flat shipping rate of $4 for up to five copies. For 6-10 copies the shipping cost is a flat $6, but contact me before placing your order.)
Click here to purchase the 6oth and best version of Identifying the Common Oaks of Northern and Central California. (Look in the lower righthand corner of the front side to find out which version you have.) You can see a video of my "Who’s Who Among the Oaks” talk here, or you can see it in person when I give it again on January 27, 2021 (link above).
And click here to learn why you might want to give the incredible, life-changing close-focusing binoculars as a gift for your loved ones or yourself.
Kate Marianchild katem@mcn.org