Photograph Friday: Appreciating Our Corner of the Earth

This week marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. In 1970, the first Earth Day drew 20 million people together in support of a more environmentally sustainable future. At the time, that was 10% of the total population of the United States. We can trace the roots of the Morro Bay National Estuary Program back to that day, which set in motion a decade of environmental reforms and grassroots work for a greener future. In 1972, the Clean Water Act established pollution control programs and protections for surface water quality. In 1987, Congress created the National Estuary Program …

Film: Community makes history in Of Marshes and Morros

March 22, 2019 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program central coast estuary estuary of national significance film grassroots MBNEP morro bay morro bay national estuary program movie Of Marshes and Morros simo nylander state estuary thomas wilmer tom wilmer Art and writing

We'll help keep beautiful Windy Cove, pictured above, and the Morro Bay State Park Marina clean.

In March of 2017, Of Marshes and Morros debuted at the San Luis Obispo International Film Festival to a full house. There, it earned accolades from the crowd and won the award for Best Documentary Short. In April of the same year, officials chose the film from thousands of entries to show live at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festivals where it won both Best Documentary Short and an additional award for Best Cinematography. The documentary is very close to our hearts at the Estuary Program because it tells how the community banded together to protect and restore the Morro Bay …

2017 Accomplishments: Community Projects Funded

January 12, 2018 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program 2017 community project estuary estuary program funding MBNEP morro bay Of Marshes and Morros sealife stewards snowy plover Blog Posts

Western snowy plover. Photograph by Pacific Southwest Region Fish and Wildlife Service, via Flickr.

Our 2017 Accomplishments blog series highlights some of the Estuary Program’s work during the past calendar year. Community Projects for 2017 Twice per year, the Estuary Program reviews proposals for community projects that benefit the Morro Bay estuary and watershed. Each successful application must address at least one of the goals of our management plan. Past community projects have addressed a wide range of issues, including bay-friendly and fire-safe gardening, rainwater harvesting, and estuarine-science education. All incoming applications must first pass a staff review before moving on to our advisory work groups, committees, and the Bay Foundation Board …

Director’s Desk Year-End Reflections 2017: Collaborating for Morro Bay

December 29, 2017 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program conservation eelgrass estuary lexie bell monitoring morro bay Of Marshes and Morros partner partnership research restoration volunteers Blog Posts

From the Director’s Desk is a twice-yearly blog series, written by Executive Director Lexie Bell. Lexie plans and directs the program’s work, and collaborates with the Estuary Program’s many partners to expand our collective success in the watershed. Lexie first began working in Morro Bay as a graduate student at the UC Santa Barbara Bren School of Environmental Science and Management. Her graduate work analyzed the economic impact of visitors’ perceptions of environmental quality in Morro Bay. In addition to her Master’s degree, Lexie graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Science and Biology. Previously, …

Community Grants Benefit Morro Bay

August 11, 2017 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program ccspa central coast state parks association community grants estuary program morro bay morro bay in bloom Of Marshes and Morros sealife stewards simo nylander slo film festival Blog Posts

Two SeaLife Stewards volunteers, ready to go out on the water safely.

The Estuary Program does a lot of boots-on-the-ground conservation, restoration, research, and monitoring work. Our staff members visit classrooms to help students learn how to be good stewards of the bay, and we reach out to locals and visitors alike through our Estuary Nature Center. No matter what we accomplish, we know that there is always more work to be done. We are lucky that so many other local organizations and individuals have great ideas for projects to benefit the bay, its wildlife, and the people who know and love this special place. Because of this, we fund a …