June 2001

We reported in our last newsletter that the California Energy Commission was reviewing a permit application from Duke Energy in Moss Landing to upgrade their facility. This permit was approved in October and construction is underway. The Regional Water Quality Control Board and the California Energy Commission requested the assistance of the Elkhorn Slough Foundation to implement a mitigation plan in response to the effects this upgrade will have on the aquatic environment in Elkhorn Slough.

The Foundation agreed to work with the agencies and Duke Energy in implementing those aspects of the Elkhorn Slough Watershed Conservation Plan that will improve the “aquatic health and productivity” of Elkhorn Slough. The Regional Water Board and the Energy Commission established an advisory committee to develop the guidelines and criteria for suitable projects. The committee includes representatives from:

California Coastal Commission
California Energy Commission
Monterey County Planning Department
Regional Water Quality Control Board
California Department of Fish and Game
The Otter Project
Center for Marine Conservation
IFR & Fishermen’s Association of Moss Landing
Moss Landing Marine Lab
Duke Energy Moss Landing
Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve
Elkhorn Slough Foundation

The criteria established by the committee will be applied to acquisitions and restoration projects presented to the Regional Water Quality Control Board and the Energy Commission for approval. The mitigation fund totals seven million dollars, including five million dollars for acquisition and restoration and two million for long-term stewardship of newly acquired lands.

Michael Thomas, program manager of the Regional Water Quality Control Board reported, “ We were pleased to get the cooperation of the Elkhorn Slough Foundation on this work. The Elkhorn Slough Watershed Conservation Plan provided some guidance for the mitigation; and the long history and excellent reputation of the Foundation made them a logical agent to implement the mitigation plan.”

This represents a significant start to an aggressive campaign of land acquisitions that will insure the long-term health and conservation of Elkhorn Slough and its watershed. We will continue to report on acquisition progress and outline the restoration projects undertaken as part of this mitigation program. Until then, you can view the Elkhorn Slough Watershed Conservation Plan on the web at www.elkhornslough.org. For more information about the Moss Landing Power Plant expansion, visit www.energy.ca.gov.

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Fish Nurseries and Eelgrass Beds

Critical Estuarine Habitats Ivestigated by Graduate Research Fellows

Two superb local graduate students currently hold Graduate Research Fellowships funded by the National Estuarine Research Reserve system to carry out investigations in Elkhorn Slough. In different ways, they are each focusing on critical estuarine habitats.

Jennifer Brown, pictured above, (Biology Dept., Univ. of Calif. Santa Cruz) has begun to apply an ingenious new technique to a puzzling old question: what is the relative contribution of estuarine nurseries to adult populations of offshore fish? Brown examines the detailed chemical composition of fish ear stones (otoliths). Estuaries have different water chemistry than do other coastal habitats, and elements from the water are incorporated into the ear stones of the growing fish. Brown collected juvenile English sole and speckled sanddabs from estuaries including Elkhorn Slough, and from other coastal habitats in the Monterey Bay. Amazingly, she found distinctive chemical signatures in the ear stones of the fish that corresponded to their nursery habitat. This is a real coup, and for her report on this work she won the “Best Student Poster” award at the 2000 Monterey Bay Sanctuary Currents symposium.

Now that she has developed this technique, the next exciting step in this detective story will be to collect adult fish from offshore populations. She can then excise the juvenile part of the ear stone, and carry out the necessary chemical analyses to determine what proportion of these fish grew up in coastal waters vs. estuaries. This knowledge will help protect fish populations by focusing conservation efforts on critical nursery habitats.

Sherry Palacios (Moss Landing Marine Laboratories) is examining the factors that influence the distribution of eelgrass beds, a habitat that supports a diversity of unique estuarine organisms, including algae, invertebrates, and fish. She and her mentor Dick Zimmerman have developed a model to predict eelgrass distribution, based on just a few parameters. These include light (influenced by turbidity and depth) and carbon dioxide, both of which are key ingredients for photosynthesis. A map of predicted eelgrass distributions in the Slough based on this model looks very similar to the actual current distribution as revealed by field searches.

Having groundtruthed this model, Palacios is now using it to predict how eelgrass distributions would change in response to altered environmental conditions. For instance, if turbidity were to increase (due to more sedimentation from fields) or depth were to increase (due to further tidal erosion), her model shows eelgrass distributions shrinking. On the other hand, if global warming proceeds as predicted, with a doubling of carbon dioxide levels in fifty years, eelgrass distributions will expand significantly, because eelgrass can survive with less light (in deeper parts of the Slough) when carbon dioxide is plentiful. Thus an undesirable global trend may actually have some positive local benefits for eelgrass. Palacios is testing this idea with experiments at the Moss Landing Power Plant, where she can manipulate carbon dioxide levels in tanks of eelgrass. Her investigations will reveal how eelgrass beds – which have shrunk to a fraction of their historical distribution – can best be preserved and enhanced at the Slough.

Kerstin Wasson, ESNERR Research Coordinator, and UCSC Institute of Marine Sciences Research Associate.

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Welcome Aboard

Thanks to our committed members and supporters, the Elkhorn Slough Foundation has grown tremendously in the past few years. Many of you may remember when the staff of the Foundation included Mark, our Executive Director; Caroline Rodgers, our long-time bookstore manager; and maybe one or two other folks. Nowadays we can hardly find the office space and phone lines to accommodate our growing staff. This is an exciting time for all of us, and we are happy to welcome these new partners to Elkhorn Slough.

Ken Collins, Assistant Land Steward for the ESF Ken Collins comes to us after completing work with the California Conservation Corps. While living and working with the CCC, here at Elkhorn Slough, Ken really fell in love with the place. As Senior Crew Leader for the CCC, Ken traveled to Russia with the Tahoe-Baikal exchange program, Australia for two months, and Kings Canyon National Park. The diversity of life here at the Slough reminded him of Australia and inspired him to stick around. His dedication and excitement for restoration work was a perfect match for the Foundation. Since January, Ken has worked as Assistant Land Steward planting 40,000 plants at Azevedo Farm, Blohm Ranch and Long Valley; supervising CCC crews; and repairing the main drainage at Blohm Ranch. Ken is excited about getting a handle on the non-native invasive weeds on the ESF properties, “I look forward to the challenges facing the Slough and being creative to find solutions. An upcoming project will be to remove the Acacia trees from Long Valley, this will take a lot of hard work with a CCC crew, but the results will be worth it.” Welcome Ken!

Beth Inman, Coastal Training Institute Coordinator Beth Inman is currently working with the Department of Fish and Game, here at the Elkhorn Slough Reserve. In July, she will take on a new position as Coastal Training Institute Coordinator for the Elkhorn Slough Foundation. In this new position, Beth will be coordinating training programs that will include the Coastal Decision-Maker Workshops and other education programs that will best suit the needs of our community. Beth has had a varied career working for private, state and federal environmental agencies, but most recently comes to us from our sister NERR at Rookery Bay in southwestern Florida. Beth has focused her career in wetlands education and loves coastal birding and sailing. She has traveled extensively in Australia with her Tasmanian husband, but looks forward to settling in the Monterey area to continue her environmental education career.

Eric Van Dyke, GIS Coordinator Back in January, we also welcomed Eric Van Dyke as our Geographic Information System Coordinator. After a successful career in computer science, Eric has switched gears to work for the Elkhorn Slough Foundation. Fascinated by our state’s extraordinary flora, he returned to the University of California, Santa Cruz two years ago, and jumped at the opportunity to study our local maritime chaparral habitat. His excitement and dedication for protecting the Slough has made him an invaluable asset to the Foundation. Eric’s principal research at Elkhorn Slough will be assembling an ecological history of the Slough, based on interpretation of historical photographs and other documents. “This is a highly modified landscape, and it’s critical that we understand the nature of these changes as we develop management and restoration plans.” He is also involved in a variety of GIS projects including mapping the watershed’s biological resources and developing a tool the Monterey County Planning Department could use to minimize development impacts. “What’s fun about GIS work is that I’m involved in pretty much everything the Foundation does, from research and education to the everyday land trust activities.”

Jerry Patrick, Elkhorn Slough Foundation Board of Directors Jerry is a resident of Aptos with a longstanding interest in conservation, sailing, and the sea. Until his recent retirement, he was owner and president of Patrick & Associates, a consulting firm providing guidance to nonprofits. Previously, he was marketing executive with Proctor & Gamble in the US and Europe, and a senior administrator at Princeton University and Wellesley College. He has served on numerous nonprofit boards and has been an advisor to The Nature Conservancy. While at Princeton, he produced an Academy Award winning film, and he has been honored as Professional Fundraiser of the Year by the National Society of Fundraising Executives. Jerry is already a great asset to the ESF Board.

 

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The Monterey Bay Bird Festival
Transition to the Future

October 2000 proved to be the most successful yet for the Monterey Bay Bird Festival. Over 250 birders from destinations as far as Germany attended this celebrated event. The Elkhorn Slough Foundation received a Pajaro Valley Business Excellence Award for promoting eco-tourism in the central bay.
This year the Monterey Bay Bird Festival will be in transition. We are working with a number of community partners including the Pacific Grove and Santa Cruz Natural History Museums, Monterey Audubon, and the Santa Cruz Bird Club to expand the festival. During this transitional year we will focus on field trips and other great birding opportunities with our local partners. Check our website later this summer for more details. www.elkhornslough.org

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Fare Thee Well

Saying Goodbye to Staff

While the Foundation staff is steadily growing, we are also bidding farewell to three key staff members who will be sorely missed.

Cecily Clemons, Director of Development
Cecily Clemons has accepted a new position and will be relocating her family to Bozeman, Montana. “This decision was a difficult one for my family and me, especially since I believe in the mission and goals of the Foundation!” She will be fundraising for a conservation organization called Predator Conservation Alliance. “I wish the Foundation all the success in the world, and will miss everyone, and most especially being an integral part of conserving and restoring one of the last remaining wetlands in California.” We wish Cecily all the best in her new position and life in Montana.

Martha Nitzberg, Volunteer Coordinator at the Elkhorn Slough Reserve
After many years with the Elkhorn Slough Reserve, Martha Nitzberg has been wooed away by Natural Bridges State Park. Martha has worked tirelessly planning special events, and nurturing our great team of docents. Her love of the job is reflected in the dedication of our volunteers. It will be hard to replace such a dedicated and thoughtful person; she will be surely be missed by the staff and volunteers. Good luck Martha!

Caroline Rodgers, Bookstore Manager
One of our founding employees has retired. Caroline Rodgers has been with the Elkhorn Slough Foundation since 1986. Starting as a volunteer in 1984, she eventually took over the bookstore and helped run the bookstore and ESF for many years. Through the years, she has remained a dedicated docent for the Elkhorn Slough Reserve and other local community groups. Her talents and creativity have helped the Foundation grow and prosper to become the successful organization that it is today. Caroline has quietly worked behind the scenes on countless projects, and the impact of her leaving is already being felt. Her retirement will leave her more time to paint, travel and volunteer in the community. We are very sad to see her go, but wish her all the best in her new life as a full time artist, traveler and student of life.

The Visitor Center is located at the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research
Reserve, 1700 Elkhorn Rd. Watsonville, CA and is managed by the California
Department of Fish & Game.

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 Board of Directors
Frank Capurro
Diane Cooley
Candace Ingram
Dick Nutter
Anne Olsen
Jerry Patrick
Wil Smith
Sally Souza
Jack Taylor
Jim Van Houten
John Warriner

Board of Advisors
Alan Baldridge
Mark Blum
Nancy Burnett
Louis Calcagno
William Doolittle
Mike Foster
Nancy Giberson
Robert Stephens
Mark Verbonich
Mary Yoklavich

ESF Staff
Mark Silberstein, Executive Director
Kris Beall, Administrative Director
Ken Collins, Assistant Land Steward
Lisa Easley, Bookstore Manager / Outreach
Jane Holte, Land Manager
Jil Hunter, Administration
Eric Van Dyke, GIS Coordinator
Kerstin Wasson, Research Coordinator

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