Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project
The Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project aims to restore and enhance Huichica Creek and its connection to tidal wetlands, helping both people and nature adapt to a changing climate.
The Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project is a collaborative effort led by Napa RCD in partnership with landowners, technical consultants, resource agencies, and the community. Located just north of the San Pablo Bay shoreline, the approximately 70-acre project area includes tidal marsh, estuarine, freshwater wetland, riparian habitat, and upland areas that are expected to become increasingly important refuge habitat as sea levels rise.
The project focuses on restoring more natural creek and floodplain functions, improving habitat connectivity and ecological health, and strengthening connections between the land and community. While habitat restoration remains the primary focus, the planning process will also evaluate flood management, environmental education, workforce development, and carefully planned public access.
Why This Project Matters
The Huichica Creek Restoration Project aims to improve habitat for fish and wildlife, reconnect the creek to its floodplain, and help the landscape adapt to rising sea levels. The project also seeks to create opportunities for the community to learn about the site and connect with the surrounding natural environment in ways that are compatible with long-term habitat restoration.
How to Get Involved
Community engagement is an important part of the Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project. Over the course of the project, Napa RCD will provide multiple opportunities at key project milestones for the community, stakeholders, and partner organizations to help shape the future of the property.
Community engagement officially kicked off on June 2, 2026 with a project webinar introducing the site, project goals, and planning process. This first phase of engagement is intended to help the public learn more about the project and begin shaping a shared vision for the site. Community members are encouraged to share their ideas, priorities, and concerns through a comment card. Feedback gathered during this phase will help inform the development of preliminary site plan alternatives.
Feedback through the comment cards will be accepted through July 1, 2026.
The next opportunity for feedback will be in late-summer 2026. Check the website or sign up for the Napa RCD newsletter for more information as the date gets closer.
Project Timeline
Huichica Creek Advisory Committee
An Advisory Committee, formed by the Napa RCD’s Board of Directors, is a crucial forum for providing input on restoration planning, design, public access, community engagement, and long-term considerations. Advisory Committee meetings are open to the public. The Advisory Committee includes Directors, Associate Directors, and members of the public. The Advisory Committee is currently fully appointed and is not accepting new applications at this time. Members of the public are encouraged to attend meetings and participate through public comment and other engagement opportunities.
Have a question or want to get involved?
Please contact Aaron Fairbrook,
Forest Health and Restoration Program Manager
History of Huichica Creek
The Napa County Resource Conservation District (Napa RCD) owns approximately 21 acres of property in the lower Huichica Creek watershed in Napa County. Over the past century, the property’s use has shifted from a commercial dairy, to a demonstration vineyard, and now to its current role as an evolving habitat restoration site.
Early maps from the 1840s-1900s show Huichica Creek as a meandering stream flowing through a broad floodplain before reaching salt marsh and tidal sloughs.
As the landscape was converted for grazing and later winegrape production, the creek channel was straightened and confined, which reduced habitat and altered natural floodplain processes.
Huichica Creek flows from the Mayacamas Mountains through the vineyards and into the tidal wetlands of San Pablo Bay, supporting diverse plant and wildlife species unique to the Bay Area.
Our Acquisition
Napa RCD and the Wildlife Conservation Board concurrently acquired 86 acres of the former Cabral Ranch. While Napa RCD stewards 21 acres along Huichica Creek, the remaining 65 acres were integrated into the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Napa-Sonoma Marshes Wildlife Area.
Together, these lands create a unique opportunity to restore about
70 Acres
of one of Napa County’s important riparian corridors across both public and private lands.
Napa RCD’s Role
Napa RCD acquired the 21-acre Huichica Creek property in 1991 to establish a demonstration vineyard that balanced agriculture with natural resource protection. At the time, Napa County was experiencing rapid conversion of natural lands to vineyards, making a conservation-focused demonstration site a high priority.
For 25 years, the vineyard showcased practices such as reduced tillage, compost application, and sheep integration, while also restoring riparian vegetation and serving as a hub for youth and community education. It was home to the first viticultural carbon farm plan and a long-term soil health study, demonstrating that environmentally sensitive farming can also be economically viable. In recent years, frequent flooding and saltwater intrusion made winegrape production infeasible, and in 2022 Napa RCD removed the vineyard and related infrastructure.
Through a community visioning process, Napa RCD and local partners identified floodplain habitat restoration as the most promising long-term use of the site. Over the next two years, Napa RCD will advance the Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project, developing a comprehensive restoration plan and pursuing permits to establish habitat restoration, public access, and community engagement across 70 acres of the Huichica Creek floodplain.
