Managers Perspective on Protecting Your Channel Islands

Date: November 8, 2007
Contact: Yvonne Menard, 805-658-5725

Chris Mobley, superintendentof Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, and Russell Galipeau, superintendent of Channel Islands National Park, will discuss the latest efforts of the park and sanctuary to ensure the long-term protection of the resources of the Channel Islands and the surrounding waters in the November, “From Shore to Sea” lecture.

Mobley will discuss the importance of expanding the network of marine zones into federal sanctuary waters and the monitoring program which evaluates the effectiveness of these zones. He will also describe the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)response to the recent blue whale strandings in Ventura County including next steps to ensure the protection of these whales in the Santa Barbara Channel during their summer feeding migration. Galipeau will discuss progress in several of the parks’ programs including education outreach, ecological monitoring and restoration. This will include island fox recovery, bald eagle re-establishment, feral pig removal and golden eagle relocation.

Mobley has worked for NOAA since 1987 when he became a commissioned NOAA corps officer. Prior to his work with the National Marine Sanctuary Program, Mobley was Pacific Salmon Coordinator within the National Marine Fisheries Service in Silver Spring, Maryland. During his career, Galipeau has worked at nine National Park Service sites from Florida to Alaska, including a position as Chief of Resources at the largest national park in the system—Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve in Alaska.

The "From Shore to Sea" lecture series is jointly sponsored by Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary with generous support from Santa Barbara Maritime Museum. The purpose of the series is to further the understanding of research on the Channel Islands and surrounding waters. The lectures will occur at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 13, 2007, at Santa Barbara Maritime Museum, 113 Harbor Way in the Santa Barbara Harbor and Wednesday, November 14, 2007, at the Channel Islands National Park Robert J. Lagomarsino Visitor Center, 1901 Spinnaker Drive in the Ventura Harbor. The programs are free and open to the public.