UC ANR's Sea Grant Extension Program brings scientific solutions to coastal resource issues

Don't be surprised if you see Rick Starr in a future National Geographic special navigating his way through forests of giant kelp in a compact yellow submarine.

The California Sea Grant Marine Advisor based in Monterey is lending his skills as a submersible pilot in the Society's Sustainable Seas Expeditions.

Starr's dives into the ecologically rich undersea world of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary focus on his specialty - rockfish and their habitats - and are providing invaluable information. For instance, he surveyed a large population of young blue rock fish off the coast of Big Sur a few years ago and found evidence that the species was doing well in that area, which enabled fishery managers to make an informed decision about sustainable harvest levels.

Starr's expertise in an important marine resource issue is not unlike his six counterparts located in coastal communities from Crescent City to San Diego. Along with UC Davis-based Chris Dewees and Bob Price, marine fisheries specialist and seafood technology specialist, this close-knit cadre of scientists form UC's Sea Grant Extension Program (SGEP). SGEP grew gradually as part of the California Sea Grant College (http://www-csgc.ucsd.edu), headquartered at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla. The program, now in its thirtieth year, has become a model of extension work in the land grant tradition; only its focus is bringing scientific solutions to coastal resource issues.

No longer just "farm advisors in hip boots"

At one time they were dubbed "farm advisors in hip boots," but the issues have evolved greatly from a generation ago when the primary concern was helping commercial fishermen catch more fish.

"From improving water quality and ocean fisheries management to seafood safety and coastal resource planning, we cover a wide range of issues touching many aspects of coastal life," Dewees says. Here's a glimpse at some of what they do.

San Diego-based marine advisor Leigh Taylor Johnson educates recreational boaters about how to minimize pollution in local harbors. Working with marinas, boat repair yards and maintenance services, Johnson has developed manuals for marina managers, brochures for boat owners and seminars throughout the state to develop best management practices (BMPs) that prevent spills of fuel and hazardous waste.

In Del Norte County marine advisor Jim Waldvogel has been monitoring a run of Chinook salmon in Mill Creek, a tributary to the Smith River, continuously since 1980. The Smith is famous for its trophy size Chinook (king) salmon and steelhead trout and Waldvogel's research documented the importance of the creek's spawning habitat. His research helped save the area from a proposed rerouting of Highway 101. The 25,000-acre Mill Creek watershed was recently purchased by conservationists and the state of California for $60 million, $20 million of which has been attributed to the Chinook based on Waldvogel's long-term study.

San Francisco-based marine advisor Jodi Cassell is in the thick of an ongoing battle against "aquatic nuisance species" (ANS) like the Chinese mitten crab, European zebra mussel and Atlantic Smooth Cordgrass. Along with another 250 non-native species, many of these organisms most likely found their way into the San Francisco Bay-Delta through the ballast water of ships and threaten native flora and fauna. Cassell heads up the West Coast Ballast Outreach Project, which provides a forum to discuss best ways to limit aquatic nuisance species and to plan educational efforts to stop the spread of unwanted ANS species.

Interest in marine protected areas growing worldwide.

Much of Santa Barbara-based marine advisor Deborah McArdle's work in recent years focused on "marine protected areas." In the face of declining fish stocks and increasing damage to marine ecosystems, interest in MPAs has grown worldwide. But the current MPA system is a confusing amalgam of designations from different levels of government. In California there are more than 100 ocean areas set aside for a range of purposes. With special funding from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, McArdle surveyed these areas and worked with the remote sensing unit at UC Santa Barbara to create an extensive geographic information system (GIS) of MPA boundaries. She published her findings in California marine Protected Areas, a California Sea Grant publication.

In Humboldt County marine advisor Susan McBride continues her aquaculture research on sea urchins and has expanded her applied research program to include rockfish, introduced crabs and eelgrass in Humboldt Bay. She recently orchestrated the highly successful Humboldt Bay and Watershed Symposium along with fellow forestry advisor Yana Valachovic. About 300 people involved in fishing, recreation, forestry, agriculture and resource management attended the two-day event in February, which was designed to heighten awareness of the economic, social and environmental connections among various users of the Humboldt Bay and its watershed.

"It was an enormous success and vastly exceeded our expectations," she said.

McBride also just received National Sea Grant Program funding to lead a multi-state Extension-led project to examine the utilization of nearshore and estuarine habitats by increasingly scarce rockfish species.

Dewees and colleague Bill Leet recently completed work on the comprehensive guide, California's Living Marine Resources: A Status report, a thorough documenting of the health of populations of many coastal species. Just published earlier this year, the report examines the status of California's commercial and recreational fisheries and discusses the natural history of many of the plants an animals. The report was mandated under state legislation called the Marine Life Management Act of 1998 and will be used by agency personnel and others in the management of coastal and marine resources.

Helping seafood processors and retailers improve food safety

As consumption of seafood has increased in recent years, so has concern over about its safety. Seafood technologist Bob Price has developed a variety of projects that are helping seafood processors and retailers improve sanitation and handling practices. Price was instrumental in bringing the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system into widespread seafood industry use. He and associate Pamela Tom also manage a centralized source of seafood safety information on the Internet -- the Seafood Network Information Center located at seafood.ucdavis.edu.

Sonoma County marine advisor Paul Olin, whose interests include aquaculture and water quality issues in Tomales Bay, is serving as SGEP's interim director. He is currently planning two regional "needs assessment" workshops in collaboration with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coastal Services Center that may be of interest to a broad cross section of the University community. Sessions will be conducted July 8-9, 2002 in Davis, California; and July 11-12, 2002 in Newport Beach, California.

"Extension professionals and natural resource managers face increasing demands on their time and need to effectively target program effort," Olin says. "With a complex array of issues to address, needs assessment is critical to developing relevant and effective education and training programs. By assessing clientele needs, program resources can be more efficiently targeted to extend the reach and impact of educational programming."

(June 2002)

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