Management Plan

NOAA has released final revised management plans, regulations and a joint final environmental impact statement for Cordell Bank, Gulf of the Farallones and Monterey Bay national marine sanctuaries.

Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary's new management plan offers a vision and course for protecting the rich marine ecosystems of ocean and coastal waters off north-central California while continuing to allow compatible, sustainable human uses. The result of more than seven years of study, planning and extensive public input, these detailed documents are major revisions of the sanctuaries' original management plans and address key issues including ecosystem protection, wildlife disturbance, vessel traffic, water quality, non-native species and coastal development. The final plan consists primarily of non-regulatory actions, but some changes to sanctuary regulations clarify and strengthen protections for marine habitats, sensitive species, and submerged cultural and historical resources.

The Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Management Plan (MP) is supported by a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). The FEIS analyzes the potential impacts from modified and new regulations, as well as impacts from a range of regulatory alternatives. The modified and new regulations are posted in the Federal Register as a Final Rule. Proposed changes to regulations are intended to clarify and strengthen protections for marine habitats, sensitive species, water quality, and submerged cultural and historic resources.

MEDIA: Download the Press release (PDF, 96KB) and highlights (PDF, 60KB).

Download the Plan

The Management Plan is available to download in its entirety, or in sections as shown below. To view or download a copy of the Management Plan, please click on the following links to view the PDF* files:

00 - Cover Page, Study Area Map, Table of Contents and Executive Summary 800Kb

01 - Introduction, Sanctuary Setting, Overview of Joint Management Plan Review (JMPR) Process, Structure of the Action Plans 960Kb

02 - Issue-Based Action Plans - Water Quality - Wildlife Disturbance - Introduced Species - Ecosystem Protection: Impacts from Fishing Activities - Impacts from Vessel Spills 2.7Mb

03 - Program Area Action Plans - Education and Outreach - Conservation Science - Resource Protection - Administration 1.6Mb

04 - Cross-Cutting Action Plans - Administration and Operations - Community Outreach - Ecosystem Monitoring - Maritime Heritage - Northern Management Area Transition Plan 960Kb

05 - Appendix I: Ecosystem Protection Implementation Plan - Estuarine Habitat - Open Ocean Habitat - Rocky Shores Habitat - Sandy Shores Habitat 900Kb

06 - Appendix II: Program Area Summary Tables - Education and Outreach - Conservation Science - Resource Protection - Administration 550Kb

07 - Additional Appendices - Jurisdictional Authorities - Glossary of Terms - Acronyms - National Marine Sanctuaries Act - Species List - Invertebrates and Algae - Introduced Species 1Mb

COMPLETE Management Plan 8.9Mb

Read a Hardcopy

Printed review copies of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement are available at libraries throughout the Bay Area.

Santa Rosa Public Library
Third & E Streets (211 E St.)
Santa Rosa, CA 95404

San Rafael Public Library
1100 E Street
San Rafael, CA 94901

Marin Co. Library/Civic Ctr
3501 Civic Center Drive # 427
San Rafael, CA 94903

San Francisco Public Library
100 Larkin Street (at Grove)
San Francisco, CA 94102-4733

Oakland Public Library
125 14th Street
Oakland, CA 94612

Pacifica Library
104 Hilton Way
Pacifica, CA 94044

Half Moon Bay Library
620 Correas
Half Moon Bay, CA 94019

Bodega Marine Lab Library
2099 Westside Rd.
Bodega Bay, CA 94923

UC Berkeley, Boalt Hall Library
University of California at Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720

Stanford University Cecil Green Library
Bing Wing Stanford Univ.
Stanford, CA 94305

Point Reyes Station/Marin County Free Library
11431 State Route
1 Point Reyes Station, CA 94956

Sonoma County Public Library
Petaluma Regional Library
100 Fairgrounds Drive
Petaluma, CA 9495

Sonoma County Public Library
Sebastopol Regional Library
7140 Bodega Ave
Sebastopol, CA 95472