What Napa County Resource Conservation District does

Napa County Resource Conservation District (Napa RCD) is a special district and local government agency established in 1945 under Division 9 of the California Public Resources Code, headquartered at 1303 Jefferson Street in Napa, California. The organization delivers voluntary natural resource conservation services across 500,000 acres in Napa and Solano Counties, serving private landowners, vineyard operators, ranchers, K-12 schools, and community members through five program areas: Forest Health (forest planning, prescribed burn association, re-oaking, wildfire recovery, North Bay Forest Improvement Program), Agriculture (irrigation evaluations, soil health assessments, carbon farming, habitat projects, LandSmart regional program), Streams & Habitat (fish barrier removal, water quality and fish monitoring, stream flow monitoring, road storm-proofing), Community & Youth (school programs reaching 1,300+ K-12 students annually, internships, scholarships, volunteer events), and the Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project on 70 acres.

The technical platform combines scientific field instrumentation (8-foot rotary screw traps deployed since 2009 for steelhead/salmon monitoring, PIT tagging antennas on the lower Napa River, irrigation uniformity evaluations, soil health assays via Oregon State University labs) with GIS-based citizen science workflows (ArcGIS Experience Builder for Stream Watch, GIS Collector App for Oak Monitoring) and the Napa County ALERT/OneRain hydrologic monitoring network. The organization stewards 15+ years of continuous watershed and fisheries datasets.

Napa RCD's revenue model is grant-dependent rather than commercial: approximately 85% of operating funding comes from competitively sought federal, state, and local government grants and contracts (notably $6.7M from NOAA and $900K from the California Wildlife Conservation Board in 2024), with less than 10% from Napa County property taxes and the balance from donations, fee-for-service programs (soil health assessments, $1,500+ corporate volunteering, vineyard crop sales from the former Huichica Creek vineyard), and event revenue. Services are predominantly free to participants, with the organization operating a community-led, partnership-driven go-to-market through co-location with USDA NRCS, 25+ formal agency and nonprofit partnerships, and a seven-member volunteer Board of Directors.

Name

Napa County Resource Conservation District

Legal name

Napa County Resource Conservation District

Website

https://naparcd.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1945

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Napa County Resource Conservation District is a 1945-founded special district providing voluntary conservation technical assistance, scientific monitoring, and environmental education across 500,000 acres in Napa and Solano Counties, serving landowners, vineyards, ranchers, K-12 schools, and community members primarily through government grants and partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Conservation Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Forestry (11531), Administration of Conservation Programs (924120), Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (9241)

SIC

Forestry (800)

akta.pro primary industry

Forest Ecosystem Services & Carbon/Conservation Programs (AFAMAAAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Watershed Protection & Water Quality Services (AFAMAMAB), Conservation, Restoration & Biodiversity Services (Habitat, Wetlands, Riparian) (IMAMAJAH), Parks, Recreation & Protected Areas Administration (BPAIAMAH)

Keywords

• Natural resource conservation
• Watershed management services
• Forest health programs
• Sustainable agriculture assistance
• Environmental education

Headquarters

HQ city

Napa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Grants and Contracts: Approximately 85% of annual funding comes from competitively sought grants and professional service agreements from federal, state, and local government agencies, as well as private foundations.
2. Property Tax Revenue: A small portion of funding (less than 10%) comes from property taxes assessed within the district boundary.
3. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, businesses, and organizations supporting conservation work. Donations support staff time, education materials, scientific equipment, and office technology.
4. Fee-for-Service Programs: Some programs such as Soil Health Assessments are offered on a fee-for-service basis. Corporate volunteering fees start at $1,500.
5. Vineyard Revenue: Revenue from the sale of wine grapes from Huichica Creek Vineyard, the organization's sustainable vineyard demonstration property.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Napa County Resource Conservation District delivers voluntary conservation services, technical assistance, scientific monitoring, and educational programs to landowners, farmers, ranchers, schools, and community members across Napa County. Core offerings span forest health and wildfire resilience, sustainable agriculture (irrigation and soil health), watershed and habitat restoration (fish passage, water quality, stream flow), and youth and community engagement (school programs, citizen science, volunteer events). Many services are free or grant-funded; select technical services are offered on a fee-for-service basis.

Product overview

Napa County Resource Conservation District provides a comprehensive portfolio of conservation programs and technical services rather than a single unified software product. The organization operates across five major service areas: Forest Health (including forest planning, prescribed burns, re-oaking, and wildfire recovery), Agriculture (irrigation evaluations, soil health assessments, habitat projects, and carbon farming), Streams & Habitat (fish barrier removal, water quality and fish monitoring, stream flow monitoring, and road storm-proofing), and Youth & Community (school programs, internships, scholarships, volunteer events, and community science programs like Stream Watch and Oak Monitoring). The LandSmart regional collaborative program connects these services across multiple RCDs. All programs emphasize voluntary participation, scientific methods, and partnerships with landowners, agencies, and community organizations to conserve, protect, and restore natural resources in Napa County.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Forest Health Program Comprehensive forest stewardship program for landowners providing coordination, planning, on-the-ground projects, and education to enhance carbon sequestration and reduce extreme fire behavior in Napa County.
• Forest Planning Services Forest planning services for rural land managers that include forest/vegetation inventory, unpaved road assessment, and assistance with securing funding for implementation, following CalFire, NRCS, and US Forest Service guidelines.
• North Bay Forest Improvement Program (NBFIP) Regional cost-share incentives program supporting private landowners with forest management planning and implementing vegetation management activities that promote forest health and wildfire resilience.
• Inner Coast Collaborative Regional partnership spanning 5,500 square miles across Colusa, Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo Counties, focused on improving forest health and fire resilience through a Regional Priority Plan and support for shovel-ready projects.
• Re-Oaking (Oaks Program) Program to reintegrate oaks and native vegetation within the developed California landscape to restore ecologically diverse ecosystems, providing technical assistance, acorns, planting supplies, and volunteers for property plantings.
• Wildfire Recovery Program Technical assistance and financial assistance connections for fire-impacted landowners through site visits, advice on erosion control, and connections to USDA relief programs for replacing crops, livestock, forage, or farm infrastructure.
• Napa Prescribed Burn Association County-wide volunteer-based mutual aid group dedicated to using prescribed fire as a tool to reduce catastrophic fire risk and restore forest health, providing education, training, and resources to conduct safe prescribed burns.
• Irrigation Evaluation Services Free irrigation evaluation services for vineyards measuring uniformity of irrigation water application, providing recommendations for improving water use efficiency and irrigation system performance.
• Soil Health Assessments Fee-for-service soil health assessments for Napa grape growers evaluating chemical, biological, and physical soil properties including macro nutrients, organic carbon, microbial activity, water holding capacity, compaction, infiltration, and aggregate stability.
• Habitat Projects Support for farmers and ranchers in adding habitat to their properties, including monarch and pollinator habitat, fish habitat, and wildlife corridors through native plant planting, invasive species removal, and habitat enhancement planning.
• Carbon Farming Carbon Farm Plan development for agricultural operations to increase carbon sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and quantify climate benefits, available for vineyard, range, orchard, and forest properties.
• LandSmart Regional collaborative program among Napa, Sonoma, Gold Ridge, and Mendocino RCDs providing vineyard conservation plans, assistance with on-the-ground projects, and youth education focused on environmental stewardship.
• Fish Barrier Removal The Napa River Watershed Fish Passage Restoration Program removes or reduces human-made barriers such as dams and undersized culverts that disrupt fish passage, improving access to critical habitat for migratory fish species including steelhead trout and Chinook salmon.
• Water Quality Monitoring Scientific monitoring assessing water quality related to fine sediment from development and agriculture, and chemical contaminants in urban runoff, using methods to collect data for conservation planning and implementation.
• Fish Monitoring Fish population monitoring in the Napa River watershed tracking steelhead trout and Chinook salmon through rotary screw traps, snorkeling surveys, PIT tagging, and documenting adult returns and spawning locations.
• Stream Flow Monitoring Monitoring of stream stage and discharge to understand how water drains from the landscape, providing information for water users, flood managers, and wastewater dischargers, with data available at napa.onerain.com.
• Road Storm-Proofing Erosion prevention and storm-proofing of unpaved roads to reduce sediment delivery to stream channels, working with landowners to assess erosion sources, develop improvement plans, and oversee implementation.
• School Programs Environmental education programs connecting K-12 students with their local watershed, including Kids for Monarchs, Wild Napa Youth, and Green Futures, with over 1,300 students reached annually.
• Teen Conservation Internship A pathway for high school youth to develop career skills, gain work experience, and lead meaningful environmental projects in their community.
• Emerging Environmental Leaders Scholarship Scholarship celebrating contributions of young leaders who have partnered with Napa RCD, with two $1,000 awards available for students graduating from Napa County high schools enrolling in environmental majors.
• Community Cleanups Year-round community cleanups including Earth Day Napa Community Cleanup, Coastal Cleanup Day, and Waterway Keepers, with programs like Cleanups with Compassion developed in partnership with UC Davis and other organizations.
• Stream Watch Community science program where volunteers track whether selected creek sites are dry, pooling, or flowing, and note trash presence, with observations submitted through ArcGIS.
• Community Oak Days Community planting events during fall and winter and maintenance days in spring and summer, supporting native re-oaking efforts in Napa County.
• Corporate & Group Volunteering Team-building and community support opportunities for companies and groups including Waterway Keepers cleanups, Acorns to Oaks planting, and invasive plant removal, with fees starting at $1,500.
• Climate-Friendly Garden Tour Annual event showcasing water-wise, pollinator-friendly, rainwater-catching, food-producing gardening techniques with workshops and demonstration gardens.
• Huichica Creek Riparian and Salt Marsh Restoration Project A collaborative restoration effort on approximately 70 acres restoring creek and floodplain functions, improving habitat connectivity, and helping the landscape adapt to rising sea levels.
• Napa River Stewardship Network A collaborative community-driven group focused on bringing together residents, landowners, agricultural producers, and public agencies to support long-term health of the Napa River watershed through sub-watershed groups.
• Mobile Irrigation Lab (MIL) Mobile Irrigation Lab providing measurements of distribution uniformity, emitter and sprayer application rates, pressures, flow rates, and water quality with confidential site-specific recommendations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,300+ K-12 students connected to local watershed annually
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

25 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• NOAAmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Awarded $6.7 million in 2024 for fish passage restoration work to help restore access to healthy habitat for migratory fish across the Napa River watershed.
• California Wildlife Conservation BoardmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Awarded $900,000 for fish passage restoration projects in the Napa River watershed.
• USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA special partnership spanning the history of the RCD. Agencies share an office space and frequently work together to provide locally-led technical and funding assistance to landowners to implement conservation practices on private agricultural lands.
• California Department of Food and AgriculturemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState agency partner providing funding for programs including the Mobile Irrigation Lab. Supports agricultural conservation efforts across California.
• California Department of Fish and WildlifemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState agency partner providing funding for fish monitoring programs and habitat restoration projects over the past 20 years.
• US Forest ServicemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal agency partner supporting forest health and fire resilience programs.
• California Coastal ConservancymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState agency providing funding for coastal and watershed restoration projects including the Huichica Creek restoration.
• County of NapamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government partner providing funding and support for conservation programs and environmental education.
• Napa County Flood Control and Water Conservation DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey local partner for stream monitoring, flood warning systems (napa.onerain.com), and water management collaboration.
• Napa Valley GrapegrowersmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry association partner collaborating on vineyard sustainability programs, irrigation best practices, and carbon farming initiatives.
• UC Cooperative ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner collaborating on the Napa Prescribed Burn Association, wildfire recovery, and agricultural education programs.
• UC DavismajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner providing research support, soil health analysis partnerships (via Oregon State University), and educational collaboration.
• Oregon State UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLaboratory partner for soil health assessments, providing tests based on nationally adopted soil health metrics.
• Land Trust of Napa CountymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation nonprofit partner for land protection and habitat restoration projects.
• Napa County Regional Park and Open Space DistrictmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government partner for park access, public lands management, and conservation coordination.
• North Coast Resource PartnershipmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional collaborative focused on water and land management across the North Coast region.
• North Bay Forest Improvement Program PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional cost-share program partners including CalFire, NRCS, and US Forest Service supporting private landowner forest management.
• Inner Coast Collaborative PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partnership spanning 5,500 square miles across Colusa, Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo Counties, coordinated and administered by Napa RCD. Lead partners include Colusa RCD, Clear Lake Environmental Research Center, Solano RCD, Sonoma RCD, and Yolo RCD.
• CALFIREmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCalifornia Department of Forestry and Fire Protection providing forest planning guidelines and fire prevention support.
• California Department of Water ResourcesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState agency partner for water management and watershed programs.
• City of NapamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government partner for Water Division collaboration, cash for grass programs, and community events.
• UC Master GardenersmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVolunteer educational organization collaborating on soil health, gardening, and invasive plant education.
• Napa Valley CanDomajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal nonprofit partner for community cleanups, volunteer coordination, and Giving Tuesday campaigns.
• Western Monarch Society of Napa CountyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit partner for monarch butterfly and pollinator habitat conservation projects.
• Bureau of ReclamationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal agency funding the Napa River Stewardship Network to develop a future watershed restoration and management plan.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/rcdnapa
• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Napa-County-Resource-Conservation-District/113575011996385
• Instagraminstagram.com/naparcd
• Xx.com/naparcd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Napa County Resource Conservation District