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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
September 14, 1999
For more information contact:
Jen Jolly
jen.jolly@noaa.gov
831-647-4237
831-420-1630
or
William Douros
william.douros@noaa.gov
831-647-4201
MARINE SANCTUARY OPENS SECOND OFFICE IN SANTA CRUZ
This September,
the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary opens its new and long-awaited
Santa Cruz branch office on the Santa Cruz Wharf. The move to expand was
prompted by the wishes of Santa Cruz County communities and governments
for more Sanctuary activities and outreach in regions north of the Monterey
peninsula. The Santa Cruz branch office will initially be dedicated to
educational and community outreach projects.
"The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary greatly appreciates the generous
offer by the City of Santa Cruz for an office on the wharf", said William
J. Douros, Superintendent for the Sanctuary. "Frankly, the attention paid
to the Sanctuary by the entire Santa Cruz community is flattering. We
are long overdue to spend more time in the Santa Cruz area and this office
will be a big step towards expanding our education and outreach efforts
in this area."
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is the nationá largest marine
protected area, stretching along 360 miles of coastline from the Marin
headlands in the north to Cambria in the south. The Sanctuary is protected
by federal legislation and a staff of fourteen employed by NOAA (the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a branch of the federal Department
of Commerce.) However, ?the strongest protection for the Sanctuary will
come from the individual people who care enough to enjoy it and use its
resources wisely,? says Jen Jolly, the Sanctuary educator hired to staff
the Santa Cruz office. ?We try to teach everyone to make the connection
between their everyday actions and the health of the ocean environment.?
The main office and headquarters for the Monterey Bay National Marine
Sanctuary will remain in Monterey, where 13 staff work on research, water
quality, resource protection and education. Jolly is the only staffperson
who will move to the new Santa Cruz office. She will work part-time for
the Sanctuary and part-time as the Santa Cruz area coordinator for BayNet,
the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Volunteer Network, which provides
natural history interpretation and Sanctuary information to the public
at shoreline sites such as Lighthouse Point.
The office is located at 55-D Municipal Wharf, in a second-floor unit
above Mariniá candy store. Visitors are welcome Monday through Friday
9am to 5pm, but since much of Jollyá work will take place outside of
the office, she advises visitors to call before making a special trip.
The public is invited to visit the new office and meet Sanctuary staff
at the Santa Cruz Office Open House during the Shark Festival and Sanctuary
Celebration on Saturday, September 18 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.
For more information on MBNMS activities in Santa Cruz County, contact
the Sanctuary office:
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary,
55-D Municipal Wharf, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
phone: (831) 420-1630
fax: (831) 420-1654 website: http://montereybay.nos.noaa.gov
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