Rocks. Some of us climb them, some of us quarry them, others of us simply admire their beauty in such places as Yosemite and Joshua Tree National Parks. But those are dry-land “rocks.” What about all those reefs, pinnacles, and small islands that dot the nearshore waters off California? Who gives them much thought?

Well, President Bill Clinton did: on January 11, 2000, he signed a proclamation creating the California Coastal National Monument, thereby protecting all those piedras blancas, pillars, and pedestals. Extending some 14 miles offshore (roughly to the boundary between the continental shelf and the continental slope) and spanning the entire coast between Mexico and Oregon, this monument encompasses all the diverse and sundry bits of rock that rise above the mean high-tide level—some 11,507 large ones (bigger than four square meters) as well as several thousand smaller ones. All offshore rocks owned by the U.S. government are included: a total of approximately (depending on the tide) 883 acres of wave-splashed, salt-encrusted land.

The southernmost of these rocks, which is nameless, is off Sunset Cliffs in San Diego: “just a little rock that birds use for perching,” said Coastal Monument manager Rick Hanks, at the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Most of the protected rocks, however, are north of Point Conception, especially along the Monterey, Mendocino, Humboldt, and Del Norte County coasts.

Havens for Seabirds

The monument was formally dedicated on May 11, 2002. Unlike more familiar national monuments in California—Pinnacles, Cabrillo, Muir Woods, Devil’s Postpile, and Lava Beds—this will not be a tourist destination, owing to its inaccessibility (not to mention most people’s lack of interest in guano). That’s just as well, because other species depend on these rocks for their very lives: they are a more-or-less safe haven, providing invaluable forage and breeding grounds for an estimated 200,000 seabirds— including the common murre, pigeon guillemot, endangered California least tern, brown pelican, and gulls—and numerous marine mammals, such as the threatened southern sea otter and California and Steller sea lions. These rocks also are rest stops for migrant birds along one narrow flight lane of the Pacific Flyway.

National monument status is the “pinnacle” of protection for these rocks and reefs, which in 1983 were federally designated the California Rocks and Islands Wildlife Sanctuary, overseen by the BLM. This designation withdrew them from mining, mineral leasing, settlement, and sale. Seven years later, the BLM named them an Area of Critical Environmental Concern—essentially giving them greater visibility in management decisions and reinforcing wildlife protection. As of 2000, the presidential proclamation stated, they were “undisturbed and undeveloped.” Now they will remain so.

Since 1989 the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has managed the rocky outcrops under a Memorandum of Understanding with the BLM. Recently, the California Department of Parks and Recreation joined the management team. Fishing is permitted around the rocks, and valid existing rights to any oil and gas leases remain unaffected. (Most of these leases lie beyond the vast majority of coastal rocks, mainly in the Santa Barbara Channel, and at present no plans exist to open them for drilling.) However, removal of products that may have commercial value (such as rock for riprap) is prohibited, and activities that might be detrimental to pelagic bird breeding are limited during nesting seasons.

Hanks said, “Monument designation took those little pieces of the California coast that were ignored and gave us a vehicle to coordinate with other partners and work toward consistency in research, outreach, public education, and wildlife protection.” In addition to BLM, DFG, and State Parks, those partners include the California Coastal Conservancy, Coastal Commission, and Coastal Resources Management Program; the National Marine Sanctuaries, Point Reyes Bird Observatory, and Monterey Bay Aquarium also intend to participate.

Work is proceeding on a resource management plan, slated for completion in early 2004. Public participation in this planning process is encouraged, and the first opportunities for input will come in late August, when the monument partners will hold a series of seven or eight public meetings in cities along the coast.

In Hanks’s view, managing California’s coastal resources is like constructing a big garment: many materials are involved, of various shapes and sizes, but one thing you can’t do without is the buttons. They don’t have to be showy or obvious, but they are critical for linking the many components together. He sees the rocks and reefs that are now protected by the Coastal Monument as those buttons: they complete the coastal garment.

Anne Canright volunteers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and is an associate editor of Coast & Ocean.

Click here to find out about an underwater mountain exploration.