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Fall 1997 |
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Page 5 |
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Inside |
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The Beauty Of The Monterey Bay Sanctuary |
pg. 5 |
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Thought About Clean Water Lately? The Water Quality Protection Program Has |
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by Kip Evans
Water Quality Education Coordinator and Marine Education Specialist for the MBNMS
It
is 6:00 a.m. and first light is just starting to break
through a towering kelp forest in Carmel Bay. In the
distance western gulls cry out, signaling the start of
another day along the shoreline of our nation's largest
Marine Sanctuary. Further offshore, a 100-ton blue whale
breaks the surface, sending a monstrous blow twenty-seven
feet into the air. Within just a few seconds, the whale has
disappeared below the surface to feed on a swarm of
krill.
So begins another day in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The high productivity of its offshore waters, fed by seasonal upwelling, makes this area an immensely rich feeding ground for thousands of birds, fish and invertebrate species. Established in September 1992, the Sanctuary extends from Marin County to Cambria. Among its many special qualities are a submarine canyon which drops to 10,000 feet in places, expansive kelp forests, and open waters which host twenty-six different species of marine mammals.
At
the northern end of the Sanctuary, chert-filled cliffs
plummet towards the ocean, meeting energetic waves from the
sea. Along Rodeo Lagoon, kids look in amazement as great
egrets lift their bodies from the lagoon and fly along the
water's edge. And just outside the Golden Gate, the
lighthouse at Point Bonita warns passing ships of this
dangerous rocky point.
Beautiful tide pools at Pillar Point reflect the evening hues of another day passing. Not far away, thousands of northern elephant seals, some weighing as much as 5,000 pounds, clamber up the beaches of Año Nuevo State Reserve.
Directly off the coast of Moss Landing sits the entrance to the Monterey submarine canyon &emdash; one of the largest in North America. Here, a variety of mysterious creatures live in a world visited only by deep-diving marine mammals and man-made devices. Above it all, sea birds, some of which spend their entire lives at sea, skim across the wind-blown white caps in search of their next meal.
Further south, the wave-carved cliffs of the Big Sur coast attract thousands of visitors each year. This picturesque coastline, while beautiful, has led to the demise of hundreds of ships, including the airship Macon. In fact, some of the Sanctuary's treasures include other sunken vessels which lost the battle with this rough coastline.
As we reflect back on time and our influence on this area, one can only wonder if our actions will have a lasting impact on what we see before us. Our ultimate challenge will be to utilize our resources in a conservative fashion, so that everyone can share and enjoy the splendor of the sea and its inhabitants.
Working Together
Inter-Sanctuary Cooperation Benefits Everyone
When you've been given the challenging task of monitoring and protecting over 5,300 square miles of water, you are always on the lookout for creative ways to get the job done. This includes combining efforts wherever possible, and working with other Sanctuaries and government agencies is one way MBNMS staff addresses these management challenges.
Inter-sanctuary cooperation means that tight budgets go farther and research and learning curves don't get repeated. "It really helps to leverage our resources," explains Terry Jackson, who has managed the MBNMS during its first five years. Ed Cassano, Manager of the Channel Islands NMS, agrees. "Why duplicate efforts?" he asks.
Monterey Bay often enters into joint ventures with its fellow California Sanctuaries. For example, in September 1996, Cassano loaned the CINMS' research vessel, the Ballena, to MBNMS. This Sanctuary, in turn, was able to invite local research scientists to use the vessel to continue two ongoing studies. CINMS and MBNMS have also joined forces to purchase an aircraft and hire a pilot to fly it. "Neither of us has the resources to each have our own, so by sharing resources, we get more bang for the buck," Jackson points out.
MBNMS is working with the Gulf of the Farallones NMS (GFNMS) on plans to open a satellite office in Half Moon Bay later this year. The joint programs that will operate from that office will facilitate the management of the northern portion of the MBNMS (from the San Mateo/Santa Cruz county line northward), increasing the Sanctuary's presence in that area.
GFNMS
Manager Ed Ueber and Ed Cassano sit as non-voting members on
the Sanctuary Advisory Council, lending their experience and
insight into Sanctuary issues. "I hope that I help the SAC
keep an awareness of what's going on in the northern areas,
and that I bring a different point of view to meetings,"
says Ueber. Participation on the SAC helps them when they
return to their own sanctuaries, too. "I have a whole new
network of people I can contact, and experiences I can learn
from," notes Cassano.
MBNMS also works with its umbrella organization, NOAA, and other agencies within NOAA, in joint ventures. For example, for the past two years, MBNMS has benefited from the donation of time aboard NOAA's research vessel McArthur. These voyages are themselves a study in cooperation: participants represent a wide range of area institutions. The Sanctuary has also been actively involved with the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve &emdash; and other organizations &emdash; to try to protect Elkhorn Slough from serious erosion problems which threaten the Slough's future.
Inter-sanctuary cooperation has helped MBNMS use its
limited resources to their fullest potential. Sanctuary
management will no doubt continue this strategy into the
next five years and beyond. 
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1999