Groundwater in Agriculture

Santa Rosa and Sonoma Valley Wine Country Tour, June 18

A limited number of seats will be available for this special one-day agricultural groundwater tour on Friday, June 18. The tour will leave from and return to the conference hotel. Approximate departure and return times are 8:30am to 6pm. Tour details are subject to change pending final tour stop arrangements. Tour cost: $150 (separate from conference registration). For registration, please send an email to Sue McClurg, SMcClurg@watereducation.org, or contact Sue at +1 916-444-6240.

Participants in this field trip through East Marin County and Sonoma Valley will taste wine and cheese, break bread, learn about efforts being made to manage groundwater in Sonoma Valley through a groundwater management program, and some of the innovative conservation and resource management approaches being conducted at the vineyard and winery level. They will also learn about California groundwater protection and regulation efforts related to confined animal facilities. The Sonoma Valley Groundwater Management Program, a stakeholder led approach involving agriculture and business, residential well owners, environmental organizations and water providers, is in its third year of implementation and includes stakeholder involvement, groundwater monitoring program, water conservation, and groundwater recharge components. Field trip stops will include a dairy and a couple of wineries and cover the topics of recycled water in irrigation, water use efficiency and conservation in the vineyards, efforts to minimize sediment production, through slowing, spreading, and sinking stormwater and sheetflow, groundwater-level monitoring, and - with respect to animal agriculture - the multi-faceted aspects of waste management, nutrient management, and groundwater monitoring used to protect groundwater quality.