California’s indoor heat worker protections were approved on July 23, 2024, by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL). This new regulation goes into effect immediately to protect indoor workers from heat illness.
​
On June 20, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board approved California Code of Regulations, Title 8, section 3396 “Heat Illness Prevention in Indoor Places of Employment” and requested that the regulation take effect immediately after OAL approval.

Cal/OSHA’s Heat Illness Prevention in Indoor Places of Employment regulation applies to most indoor workplaces, such as restaurants, warehouses, and manufacturing facilities. For indoor workplaces where the temperature reaches 82 degrees Fahrenheit, employers must take steps to protect workers from heat illness. Some of the requirements include providing water, rest, cool-down areas, and training.

Additional requirements, where feasible, apply where the temperature reaches 87 degrees such as cooling down the work area, implementing work-rest schedules, and providing personal heat-protective equipment. Where workers wear clothing that restricts heat removal or work in high radiant heat areas, the additional requirements apply at 82 degrees.
Cal/OSHA has developed educational materials and resources to help employers understand and comply with these requirements.

New educational materials and resources include:

• Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention webpage
• Indoor Heat Illness Prevention Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Combined Indoor and Outdoor Heat Illness Prevention Model Plan for Employers
• Indoor Heat Illness Prevention Fact Sheet for Employers
• Indoor Heat Illness Prevention Fact Sheet for Workers
• Indoor Heat Illness Prevention webpage
• Comparison Chart of Indoor and Outdoor Heat Illness Prevention Standards

​You may have heard by now of an invasive insect pest called the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula). This damaging pest was found in Pennsylvania in 2014 and has established itself in 17 states since then. It is native to Asia, where it lives in balance with population controls such as parasitic wasps and other predators. Here in the United States, no such controls exist, and the population expands rapidly. The spotted lanternfly (SLF) has done serious damage to vineyards. The story of SLF is intertwined with a particular tree species, also endemic to Asia. The tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) is a favored host of SLF, and some researchers point to growing evidence of a dependent relationship between the insect and this prolifically spreading tree. Unfortunately, tree of heaven (TOH) was deliberately introduced to the United States in the 1700’s as an extremely hardy and fast-growing ornamental species.

There are many established stands of TOH here in Napa that will provide prime habitat for SLF in the event the pest is introduced here. Some of these TOH populations are directly adjacent to vineyards, increasing the risk of SLF infestation. It is not likely that a weak flyer like SLF would ever expand its range westward through the many geographic barriers it would face. Rather, this pest will likely make it debut into California as a hitchhiker on a plane, in a car, or as egg masses attached to objects in transfer from infested areas. For this reason, California Border Inspection Stations are on high alert to detect SLF egg masses. Because the SLF threat is so severe, the California Department of Food and Agriculture has established an action plan to facilitate rapid response.

The Napa County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office (CAC) has been closely monitoring the SLF/TOH connection and threat potential. Along with plenty of public outreach and education materials, we have been placing SLF detection traps throughout the county since 2020. Very few other counties has actively trapped for this pest. The traps are located in areas of highest risk, including adjacent to vineyards, storage and shipping facilities, rail lines, the airport, and campgrounds. Along with a detection trapping program, we have done a thorough survey of the county, mapping the location of TOH individuals and sapling clusters. This work was made possible by initial grant funding from the State, and on-going funding from the Winegrape Pest and Disease Control District. Napa CAC also inspects all plant material entering the county, along with inspections of materials moved here from high-risk areas. These inspections also look for the egg masses of the Spongy Moth, formerly known as the Gypsy Moth. The Napa CAC will remain vigilant and proactive in facing the double threat of TOH and SLF.

If this information has made you want to take action yourself, we’d like to ask for your help in identifying more TOH specimens for a mapping project that allows us to prioritize locations for detection trapping and outreach. Please participate in our survey to help you identify TOH. 

In this episode, David Shew, the Napa County Fire Administrator, discusses his role and plant to create fire resilient landscapes. With the increasing severity of wildfires on the built environment there is a need now, more than ever, for proactive planning. They discuss the role of prescribed burns, the importance of collaboration between landowners and fire managers, and the need for more conversations about fire management strategies. David touches on the current fire season and the challenges faced by grape growers in managing vineyards during extreme weather conditions.

In "Glass with a Grower," Andrew Opatz, the Director of Vineyard Operations  at Chappellet, shares a bottle of 2021 Chappellet Prichard Hill and discuss the particular challenges with water during that growing season. Andrew goes on to share all the proactive work being done at Chappellet Vineyards to create a fire-resilient property and the importance of safety measures for vineyard workers.

Additional resources on wildfire preparedness can be found on the NVG Website. ​

"The truth is, we are dealing with the compounding impacts of climate change and over 100 years of land management decisions. We can't turn back time, but we have to act now." -David Shew

"Napa County has been one of the most progressive and effective practitioners of fire prevention, thanks to the real commitment from both public and private partnerships here." - ​David Shew

"To effectively conduct prescribed burns, we need more collaboration—between landowners, growers, fire agencies, and environmental groups—to plan when, where, and how we can safely and strategically reintroduce fire." - ​David Shew

"We use advanced tech, like sap flow and evapotranspiration sensors, but boots on the ground are still essential. Nothing beats walking through the vineyard and seeing things firsthand." -Andrew Opatz

"We’ve built an independent fire defense system at Chappellet with a water tender, gel trailer, and strategically placed standpipes across the property to help protect our people and structures in a fire." -Andrew Opatz