It is wonderful and empowering to realize that this part of the coastline and ocean will be protected and enjoyed by many future generations because of the concerns of conservation-minded citizens over the living resources in the Monterey Bay. The National Marine Sanctuary Program in many ways is the ocean equivalent to our land-based National Forest Service. Both programs are mandated to protect the resources while promoting public and private use of the resources, as long as those uses are compatible with the main mandate of resource protection. Another very important mandate of the sanctuary program is to conduct public outreach and education to improve public awareness of ocean and sanctuary resources. The paradigm of an immutable ocean with infinite bounties has shifted to one of a dynamic ocean with resource limits, deserving of our respect and protection.
Black rockfish are large, powerful swimmers.
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary encompasses over 5,300 square miles and stretches from Marin County southward to Cambria in San Luis Obispo County. Within this expansive area we can find a large variety of ocean and coastal habitats, ranging from majestic kelp forests and wind-swept sandy beaches to one of the largest submarine canyons of the world. The entire area is nourished by nutrient-rich upwelling, supporting an exceptionally rich and abundant marine ecosystem, including endangered and threatened species such as the California sea otters and stellar sea lions. I am a fifth-generation Californian and have lived a large majority of my life within the spray of Pacific Ocean waves. I have a deep passion for the oceans and ocean issues, and have worked tirelessly to bolster the nation's land and ocean resource initiatives designed to save essential fish habitat, and to provide the nation's marine sanctuaries with additional opportunities to sustain themselves financially.