Works Cited

Henson, Paul, and Donald J. Usner. The Natural History of Big Sur. Berkeley: University of 

California, 1993. Print.

Jessup David A., Miller M, Kreuder-Johnson C, et al.: "Sea otters in a dirty ocean." Journal of American Veterinary Medical Association 231(11):1648–1652, 2007.


Foster, Michael S., and Glenn R. Vanblaricom. "Spatial variation in kelp forest communities along the Big Sur coast of central California, USA." Cryptogamie Algologie 22.2 (2001): 173-186.

"History of Big Sur California." History of Big Sur California. Big Sur Chamber of Commerce, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/history.html>.


Images:


California Coast Map. Digital image. TrekAmerica. Peak Adventure Travel Group Limited, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.trekamerica.com/tours/xcn.html>.


Littoral, Limnetic, and Euphotic Zones. Digital image. Lakes Monitoring Program. RMB Environmental Laboratories, 2007. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.rmbel.info/reports/Static/LL_boatslittoral.aspx>.


"Map of Big Sur." Map of Big Sur. BBC Worldwide, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/north-america/usa/big-sur/>.


Rainbow Lodge and "Rainbow Bridge" - Now Bixby Bridge. Digital image. Big Sur Coast Properties. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bigsurcoastproperties.com/history>.


Jessup, DA. Sea Otter Death Clusters & Causes. Digital image. Otterproject.org. Journal of American Veterinary Medical Association, 2007. Web. 1 Dec. 2012. <http://www.otterproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Jessup_etal_2007_Sea_otters_in_a_dirty_ocean.pdf>.


Images not cited within are my own.

Future Prospects

My research leads me to believe that Big Sur has a relatively positive future. The human impact has been kept to a very minimum, which is rare for an area so naturally beautiful. Due to the hard work of the long time residents and Monterey County, I don't see this changing in the near future. Also the introduction of the protected areas in 2007 due to legislature is a sign that protection of the area is increasing. The dangers I foresee lie mainly in climate change, which affects the entire world.

In order to maintain this positive conservation and preservation, the land use rules must be upheld by the County of Monterey. The protected areas must remain so, which is uncertain due to the recession and California's budget crisis. The government must make protecting our earth a priority if areas like Big Sur are to persist.

Below is a table to summarize my research; it briefly describes the effect of each environmental impact I deemed possibly significant (left) and on the top lists important elements of the intertidal zone. This table shows that climate change is indeed the most threatening environmental hazard to the Big Sur intertidal region, followed by offshore drilling.

Human Impacts Today

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS

The biggest human impacts affecting the Big Sur intertidal region are global warming/climate change, offshore oil drilling in Southern California and Alaska, and ocean pollution such as garbage and chemical waste (Henson et al, 1993 p. 278).

The drastic reduction of the sea otter population is a good example of how human impact has affected Big Sur. The pacific maritime fur trade lead sea otters almost to extinction; the surviving sea otters are now dying at a higher rate and living shorter lives. Approximately 64% of bodies recovered and examined from 1994-2001 had died due to disease caused by pollutants or toxins. Since sea otters eat 25-35% of their body weight per day, if their food supply contains toxins, they will be much more concentrated and have a quicker effect. Chemical runoff and sewage create toxic algae which then affects all organisms feeding off of it. Due to their near shore inhabitance, sea otters are more susceptible to human made pollutants (Jessup et al, 2007, p. 1648).

The photo above shows clusters of 25 or more sea otter deaths. It is important to note that none of these clusters are in the Big Sur region, and in fact the largest population of about 50 surviving otters lived in Big Sur. This shows how well preserved Big Sur is and how positive its conservation outlook is. However, this does not mean that they are not affected - sea otters do not stay in one place, and a loss of total California sea otter population or the spread of disease affects all regions involved.

Loss of sea otters has devastated the intertidal region and permanently altered its ecology. With no sea otters, other herbivores are allowed to thrive and begin overeating kelp and their relative communities. This causes the destruction of kelp forests and a change in the makeup of intertidal ecosystems, leaving the shore more susceptible to harsh waves and weather without their kelp barrier. In some cases this means the destruction of much of the biodiversity in the region (Jessup et al, 2007, p. 1648).

In terms of global warming, ocean temperatures rising could disrupt and alter the ecological makeup of intertidal zones. Since these areas are such a complex balance of diverse organisms, the smallest changes will have far reaching effects. Furthermore, global warming may cause increased frequency and intensity of storms which could further devastate the less protected intertidal regions.

CONSERVATION STATUS: GOOD

However, the results of this impact are at a minimum, as Big Sur has been preserved extraordinarily well. After an initial period of industrialization in the end of the nineteenth century followed by the development of Highway 1 in the start of the twentieth century, the residents of Big Sur pulled together to make conservation and preservation a priority. The low population of 1,000 as well as inaccessibility and lack of available land for development has kept urban development away, as well as the strict land policy laws that Monterey County has instigated, including the prohibition of billboards or any new construction visible from Highway 1.

Millions of tourists drive through Big Sur every year, but they rarely stay the night, and if they do it is usually to camp in one of the nine State Parks. Big Sur also has two federal wilderness reserves, Ventana Wilderness and Silver Peak Wilderness. It has two offshore marine protected areas, Point Sur State Marine Reserve and Marine Conservation Area, and Big Creek State Marine Reserve and Big Creek State Marine Conservation Area. Established in 2007 as a part of the Marine Life Protection Initiative (a collaborative public project in California), these protected areas not only conserve and preserve, but participate in scientific studies and cooperate with various California Universities including Stanford, Cal Poly, and UC Santa Cruz (www.bigsurcalifornia.org).

Ultimately, much of the environmental damage to Big Sur comes from humans in the rest of the world and not specifically the region itself, via global warming and diseases carried through sea mammals from other places.

History

Bixby Bridge (then Rainbow Bridge) built 1931

Rainbow Lodge and "Rainbow Bridge" - Now Bixby Bridge. Digital image. Big Sur Coast Properties. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bigsurcoastproperties.com/history>.

Big Sur Today


OVERVIEW

Historically the Big Sur region was populated with several Native American tribes with more members than there are inhabitants today. The late eighteenth century saw Spanish occupation slowly wiping out Native American populations, eventually giving way to Mexican control in 1821. This era was the introduction to human development in Big Sur, spurred by a growing lumber industry in an industrial boom towards the end of the nineteenth century. Highway 1 was completed in 1937, allowing mainstream access to become much easier. However throughout this development, human induced environmental impact was at a very minimum. This is partly due to the inaccessibility of the Big Sur area, with its rocky, mountainous terrain and lack of developed roads; but it was upheld by Monterey County's strict land use rules and the residents that worked hard to prevent excessive development or industry. Billboards are not allowed in the area, and new construction visible from Highway 1 is prohibited. There are no urban centers and the economy is based solely on tourism, often those just passing through. The population of today is around 1,000 according to the 2000 census (www.bigsurcalifornia.org).

Intertidal Zone History

Historically, the intertidal region of Big Sur looked relatively similar to that of today. However, it featured higher biodiversity, greater sea otter and seal populations, and cleaner water.

Ecosystem Overview

Big Sur is a 90 mile stretch of coastline along Highway 1 that runs from Carmel (just below Monterey) to San Simeon (just before San Luis Obispo). It is about 150 miles south of San Francisco and 300 miles north of Los Angeles.

California Coast Map. Digital image. TrekAmerica. Peak Adventure Travel Group Limited, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://trekamerica.com/tours/xcn.html>.

Map of Big Sur. Digital image. Lonely Planet. BBC Worldwide, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/north-america/usa/big-sur>. 

The ecosystem of Big Sur is extremely complex, and includes several sub-ecosystems. It is made unique by its combination of both land and ocean habitats. Big Sur is of the mediterranean biome, and its official ecosystem is classified as California Coastal Chaparral Forest & Shrub. However, I will be focusing specifically on the intertidal zone of Big Sur, the ecosystem that occurs on the actual coastline.

INTERTIDAL ZONE: LITTORAL ZONE

The "intertidal zone" or the littoral zone lies between low and high tides, or where the waves meet the shore. 

Littoral, Limnetic, and Euphotic Zones. Digital image. Lakes Monitoring Program. RMB Environmental Laboratories, 2007. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.rmbel.info/reports/Static/LL_boatslittoral.aspx>.

Tide Pool

Intertidal zones may feature high biodiversity due to several factors:

1. The upwelling of nutrients by the tides

2. Shallow enough to receive sunlight

3. Usually rocky and allow animals hiding places

However, Big Sur's intertidal zone features even more biodiversity because it is a transition zone between the cooler Oregonion Ocean Province and the warmer Californian Ocean Province. Due to this overlap, many species that would never naturally meet begin to coexist. (Henson et al, 1993 p. 52).

Intertidal zones are very delicate places; it is easy to create imbalance, either naturally or human-induced. Intense waves, too much exposure to air, or the chemical makeup of rocks may make some areas completely inhabitable for many species. Human impacts as simple as wading through the tide pools or a boat passing through could devastate an intertidal zone.