Archive for Toxics & Pollution
Farming Competitions Should Reward Sustainability
I admit it – I’m smitten with the 28 ribbons and $103 in prize money I won for my veggies at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair this week. Make no mistake – for me, it’s not about winning (…if you ain’t first, you’re last Ricky Bobby…) as much as it is about my little [...]
Wine, Tasting Rooms & Balloons: Latex is Not Indicative of Sonoma Terroir (or Environmental Responsibility)
I have been overtaken by an escalating disdain for the wine industry’s love of party balloons. In an era were many are striving towards sustainability in winemaking and viticulture, these symbols of a wasteful and “throw away” society are brilliantly flapping in the winds of vineyards across America. For the past couple of years I [...]
Net Loss for the Environment: The Burning of Vineyard Vines Makes a Less Sustainable Wine
A long-time resident of Calistoga recently told me of a time before the Clean Air Act when smog from San Francisco Bay would blow up the Napa Valley, tinting the sky with a lovely russet hue. Now it seems that the largest threat to air quality in many wine regions (besides the obvious automobile [...]
Mobile Source Toxics and Terroir: Going the Extra Ten Miles in Napa Valley
Ever been stuck in Napa Valley traffic? Locked in a snaking queue of SUVs, fancy sedans and convertibles, feeling like a fool for being such a weekend warrior? Live in the Valley and dread the bottleneck that is St. Helena on a Friday afternoon? Is there a better way to fly? Napa Transit Investors (NTI) [...]
