The Nature Conservancy in California - California Marine Program

Be a part of history! Donate today and help protect California's beautiful lands and waters for future generations.

Be Part of the Solution

The actions you take have an impact on our fisheries. Buy sustainably caught fish. Better yet, buy locally caught fish. Support the Conservancy in its efforts to create a sustainable and prosperous future. The California Coastal and Marine Program needs your commitment to help make these types of ground-breaking projects possible. Join us today.

Deep Dive

Central Coast Groundfish Project
Together with fishermen on California’s Central Coast, The Nature Conservancy is developing more environmentally sensitive fishing practices for harvesting groundfish and providing consumers with fresh, local and more sustainably harvested seafood.

ROVing the Waters to Protect Our Oceans
The Nature Conservancy and partners launched a five-year study to assess the impact of trawl fishing in soft-bottom seafloor habitats in Morro Bay, using cutting-edge technology — a remotely operated vehicle (ROV).

California Coastal and Marine Program
Protecting California’s vast and diverse marine resources calls for a broad array of conservation strategies, many of which are being initiated by the California Coastal and Marine Program.

Celebrating 50 Years in the Golden State

2009 marks the Conservancy’s 50th anniversary protecting California. In these 50 years, we’ve safeguarded hundreds of parcels of land and waterways and millions of acres of ocean — natural habitats essential to the survival of all species, including us.
Learn about the California natural habitats you've helped protect.

The Nature Conservancy has a long tradition of conserving land by working with partners to promote sustainable practices that balance natural and human needs. As the California Program celebrates 50 years of exciting results, we look to our ground-breaking efforts to protect our oceans.

The California Coastal and Marine Program is taking on overfishing and the destruction of ocean habitats by working with communities to pioneer cutting-edge science, innovative tools and markets that encourage long-term stewardship of our oceans for both people and nature.

Big Results

Building on our decades-long experience of forming unique partnerships, the Conservancy has been able to help protect our valuable oceans, preserve California’s iconic maritime heritage and supply consumers with fresh, local seafood.

The Nature Conservancy worked with partners to protect 3.8 million acres (6,000 square miles) of seafloor off California’s Central Coast. As a result, the Conservancy now owns federal trawling permits — a first for a non-governmental organization. Cooperation with fishermen and harbormasters was an essential part of this process.

Today we are building on these relationships to implement an array of truly innovative marine conservation programs and have accomplished the following:

Reduced bottom trawl impacts in the Central Coast through fishing permit acquisitions

Allocated seven Conservancy trawl permits toward more economically and environmentally sustainable fishing practices

Received a grant from the California Ocean Protection Council for a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) — an underwater robot with cameras — used for groundbreaking research — and were the first conservation organization to be awarded such funds

Developed and launched the world’s first Conservation Easement in the Oceans

Launched pilot “community-based fishing association” project

Inspiring Change Beyond California

This pioneering work in California can be applied to other fishing communities around the globe. In the Gulf of Maine, for instance, the Conservancy recently purchased fishing permits and works with fishermen to use those permits to develop more sustainable harvesting practices — like using more selective gear and avoiding sensitive habitats.

Modern Fishing for Modern Times

The Conservancy recently launched ECatch, an interactive database that enables fishermen to upload data about species they are catching, tonnage, location and other critical information; this data can be easily shared with other fishermen, the Conservancy and fishery managers. As the demand on our natural resources increases, managing fisheries becomes more and more important.

Sharing such information traditionally goes against the grain of independent fishermen; however, a core group of fishermen working with the Conservancy since 2005 have agreed to pilot the system. The Conservancy will continue to expand this tool to test whether a collaborative approach can make fishing more economically successful without depleting fish stocks.