REDWOOD NEEDLES

Presented by the Sierra Club Redwood Chapter Newsletter,
The REDWOOD NEEDLES

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Bulldozers Awaken
On Mount St. John

by Dave Briggs

For the second year in a row, steep hillsides near Napa County's Mount St. John have been illegally bulldozed for roads that lead to mysterious building pads. The earth moving has occurred without a grading permit or erosion control plan required by County law. Worse, the roads have been carved into highly erodable slopes during the rainy season when grading, even for permitted work, is forbidden due to the risk of erosion and associated creek siltation.

The hills of the Mount St. John area shape the western skyline of Napa County just north of Mt. Veeder and west of Oakville. They are part of the Dry Creek watershed: an area of steep wooded slopes with interspersed chapparal draining into clear, shaded streams like Campbell Creek. The system is significant not only for the fish breeding potential of its streams, but for the attention it has attracted.

Neighboring landowners and others interested in the health of the watershed have met for about two years. With the assistance of the local Resource Conservation District, the group is documenting the status of the watershed in the hope that, by recognizing its value, the interests of all will be best served. The voluntary project is a watershed management approach gaining favor with state and federal agencies. But one scofflaw can ruin decades of care and concern for a sensitive watershed.

The Napa County Sierra Club alerted County officials to the bulldozing at Mount St. John in February. When the County notified the landowner, Stan Matteson, of the need for permits and erosion controls, he responded as he had to complaints the previous year, claiming he was simply clearing brush from jeep trails and had no development plans. But on-site and aerial photos supplied by the Sierra Club reveal extensive road cuts leading to building pads, one with a new water well. A video tape shows a tributary to Campbell Creek bulldozed into oblivion for what appears to be stage one of on-stream reservoir development. Combined with a Dunn and Bradstreet report identifying the owner as a big-time developer with offices from Hawaii to British Columbia, the evidence suggests an interest in far more than brush clearing.

Our most recent information is that Matteson has denied all responsibility for the creek damage and is taking a new tack in avoiding County hillside protections. Now he claims to be planning to build a horse barn on the property, which would qualify him for agricultural exemption to road building permits and erosion plan requirements. Meanwhile, the County Board of Supervisors has announced new interest in strength-ening hillside conservation rules this year. Both the CA Dept. of Fish and Game and County have submitted complaints against Matteson to the County District Attorney's Office. This is the first step toward legal penalties against Mount St. John's newest environmental enemy.

Dave Briggs

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