Dear friends and supporters of our watershed and oak woodland protection initiative,
Last year, our grass roots organization gathered 6,300 signatures for an initiative to enhance protections for streams and oak woodlands. It was a phenomenal accomplishment and speaks volumes to the support we received from the community. Voters are increasingly aware that the health of the natural environment and human ecology are integrated. They’re concerned, as they should be, and want to have a voice in the matter.
As it turned out, we weren’t able to bring our initiative to the ballot. But earlier this year, when leaders in the NVV suggested we partner in the process, it gave us hope we could strike out on a new path that would ultimately succeed. And now we have a revised initiative that we’re confident will meet the needs of the present but also protect the needs of generations to come. It is titled, Napa County Watershed and Oak Woodland Protection Initiative of 2018.
We’re grateful for the Vintners’ bold leadership and their solidarity with neighbors seeking solutions to pressing needs of the natural environment. Please take a look at their bulletin, below, for more information. We’ll be gathering signatures soon for the June ballot. You’re welcome to join us if you can.
Sincerely grateful, on behalf of all of those pulling together for the common good,
BULLETIN
Subject: NVV and Environmental Leaders Collaborate to Protect Woodlands and Watershed |
NVV is collaborating with local environmental leaders in support of a ballot initiative that will protect oak woodlands and the local watershed.
The Napa County Watershed and Oak Woodland Protection Initiative of 2018 establishes enhanced water quality buffer zones and oak woodland protections in the Ag Watershed, without overburdening responsible property owners. What Will the Initiative Accomplish?
It’s important to note that the initiative is forward-looking and will not affect vineyard replants. Why Did We Do This? Though the 2016 initiative, which we and other industry groups actively opposed, failed to qualify for the ballot, we never considered that a “win” for the wine industry. Rather, it inspired us to explore common ground and the chance to collaborate with the original petitioners, given they had publicly declared their intent to come back with a new ballot measure. Together, we found an approach that we believe will receive widespread support and eliminate the need for a potentially costly and divisive community campaign with an uncertain outcome. When presented with the concept over the summer, initial feedback from County leaders has been extremely enthusiastic. They, too, recognize the value of industry and environmental leaders working together for common community benefit, as we have done in the past. What’s Next? How Can You Help?
Leaders in our community have a long and successful history of collaboration and compromise for the greater good, going back to the establishment of the Ag Preserve a half century ago. There are numerous examples since. This is the next step in that proud local tradition. |