Landscape Change in the Napa River Watershed: Implications for Habitat Restoration (1800-2002)

1. Landscape Change in the Napa River Watershed, 1800–2002: Implications for the Restoration of In-Stream, Floodplain, and Valley Floor HabitatGrossinger, R., Striplen, C., Brewster, E., San Francisco Estuary Instituteand L. Collins, Watershed SciencesCALFED Science ConferenceJanuary 16, 2003

2. Project Goals • a map of the pre-European impact fluvial system • extent of floodplain • location of distributary systems, side channels, riparian habitat  flood control, stream restoration, fisheries recovery • a map of the pre-European impact distribution and abundance of valley floor habitats • oak savanna • seasonal wetland/vernal pools • native grassland  conservation planning (identifying remnants, proportional representation, designing corridors and mosaics) • land use history • spatial extent and duration of grazing, logging, ditching, etc.  identify early uses which may have ongoing effects • community-participatory process acquire needed data greater shared understanding of how the current landscape has evolved and its potential for restoration

3. Presentation Outline 1. Approach • Partnerships • Issues of scale 2. Methods • 19th-century Historical Documents • Early Aerial Photography • Mapping of Present-day Ecological Remnants 3. Preliminary Findings — methodological and technical • Pleasures and Pitfalls of Historical Sources • Discovery of Counter-Intuitive Changes • Substantial Variation in Historical Landscape within a Small Area ( variation in present-day geomorphic controls)

4. Napa River Watershed Historical Ecology Project endorsedand/or funded by: • Napa Valley Vintners Association • Land Trust of Napa County • Mead Foundation • Mennen Environmental Foundation • Napa County Planning Department • Napa County Resource Conservation District • SF Bay Region Water Quality Control Board • California Department of Fish and Game • Army Corps of Engineers • CALFED Watershed Program

5. Napa River Watershed Historical Ecology Project Collaborators Shari Gardner and Chris Malan, Friends of Napa River – local project coordinatorsElise Brewster, Brewster Design Arts – archival research, historical cartography Mike Champion, Napa RCD – archival researchSarah Pearce, SFEI – fluvial geomorphologyLaurel Collins, Watershed Sciences – fluvial geomorphologyChuck Striplen, SFEI and UCB – pre-European land managementJosh Collins, SFEI –wetlands geomorphologyLester McKee, SFEI –watershed processesJake Ruygt, Napa County Botanist – local plant community ecologyRobin Grossinger, SFEI – historical ecology/landscape historyThomas Burns, GIS Mapping and Analysis – historical photogrammetryEric Wittner, SFEI – GIS development

6. 1. Approach • Partnerships • Issues of scale 2. Methods • 19th-century Historical Documents • Early Aerial Photography • Mapping of Present-day Ecological Remnants 3. Preliminary Findings — methodological and technical • Pleasures and Pitfalls of Historical Sources • Discovery of Counter-Intuitive Changes • Substantial Variation in Historical Landscape within a Small Area ( variation in present-day geomorphic controls)

9. Project Scale and Corresponding Topics

10. Napa River Watershed Sulphur Soda Soda Carneros San Francisco Bay

11. 1. Approach • Partnerships • Issues of scale 2. Methods • 19th-century Historical Documents • Early Aerial Photography • Mapping of Present-day Ecological Remnants 3. Preliminary Findings — methodological and technical • Pleasures and Pitfalls of Historical Sources • Discovery of Counter-Intuitive Changes • Substantial Variation in Historical Landscape within a Small Area ( variation in present-day geomorphic controls)

16. 1. Approach • Partnerships • Issues of scale 2. Methods • 19th-century Historical Documents • Early Aerial Photography • Mapping of Present-day Ecological Remnants 3. Preliminary Findings — methodological and technical • Pleasures and Pitfalls of Historical Sources • Importance of Pre-1940s Data • Potentials for Misinterpretation • Substantial Variation in Historical Landscape within a Small Area ( variation in present-day geomorphic controls) • Discovery of Counter-Intuitive Changes

24. USCS 1860 USCS 1861

29. Lower Sulphur Creek ca. 1940 Aerial photomosaic 1993 Aerial photomosaic

31. Products from Napa River Watershed Landscape Change Studies • Historical Ecology Component of Napa Watershed Exhibit at the Napa Valley Museum -- opens January 25 • Napa River Sediment TMDL Baseline Study: Geomorphic Processes and Habitat Form and Function in Soda Creek -- ~ 1 month • Stewardship Support and Watershed Assessment in the Napa River Watershed: A CALFED Project (Sulphur and Carneros Creeks) -- ~ 6 months • Napa Valley at the Time of European Contact GIS and Report -- ~ 1 year (pending funding) www.sfei.org