Lake
County Wine Industry: Limited Impact of the Complex Fire
By FBWorld Team
Since
August 2, 2018, the active fire perimeter of the Mendocino Complex
Fires shifted into remote forest wildlands around 15 to 30 miles
north of Lake County vineyards. Additionally, as of Wednesday,
August 8, 2018, thousands of residents were able to return to
their homes as evacuation orders lifted for most Lake County
towns. Lake County winegrape growers are glad to see people
back in their homes and back to work, striving for normalcy
on all accounts.
Smoke
plumes from the Mendocino Complex Fires remain in remote northern
wildland areas, far from major winegrowing regions. These smoke
pockets are being carried east by prevailing winds, with morning
haze blown out by midday breezes.
Damage
to the wine industry remains very limited and extremely isolated,
with around .05 percent of all planted acres of vines seeing
burns. Vineyards provided firebreak due to the cultivation of
the land and the moisture that is held in the vine canopy. Firefighters
were able to utilize vineyard agricultural ponds and nearby
lakes to supply water for their efforts.
"We
at the Lake
County Winegrape Commission
worked closely with local officials to ensure real-time
updates of the fire for the safety of our vineyard workers and
properties," said Debra Sommerfield, President of the Lake
County Winegrape Commission. "Lake County grape growers
are deeply grateful to all first responders for their tireless
efforts to protect our residents and our communities, and we
are thankful to be able to report that direct impact to our
industry was minimal."
Throughout
much of the West Coast, wildfire has become part of the ecosystem
due to rugged mountainous topography, winds, and thousands of
acres weakened by drought. With details from the 2017
U.S. Geological Survey, Paul Steblein, USGS fire
science coordinator, stated: "human caused ignitions, warmer
temperatures, dry and wet spells, and accumulation of fuels
are some of the factors contributing to longer wildfire season,
increases in the number of large and long-duration fires, and
more severe effects from the wildfires."
To
help with fire relief efforts, donations may be made to North
Coast Opportunities at https://www.ncoinc.org/
or Rotary 5130 Fire Relief Fund at https://www.larca5130.org/.