Archive for the 'Australia' Category

Demonstrators protest at the site of a new bridge over Germany's Mosel River.

The wine business has almost always had a complicated relationship with the natural environment. There is little natural about vineyards–nonnative species, terraforming, soil amendments, artificial drainage and/or irrigation systems, metal, plastic or treated-wood stakes and metal wires–all lead to a profoundly altered environment. Not to mention the various chemical treatments used in viticulture, even in certified organic and biodynamic vineyards.

Yet in the past couple of decades, wineries and vineyards have become more aware of environmental issues and made great strides in reducing chemical inputs, providing nesting boxes for native predators (as at Shafer Vineyards) and restoring native and riparian habitats (see the tremendous efforts by the Rutherford Dust Society to protect fish spawning grounds in the Napa River).

Read the rest of this entry »