Restoring Bolinas Lagoon

Along the California coastline, Bolinas Lagoon is a magical place for birders, wildlife watchers, paddlers, and more. Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary has been working with partners to restore this special habitat so it can thrive and adapt to future changes.
Media Transcript:
[Video opens to an image of a waterway with a forest in the background. White text on the screen reads,
“Greater Farallones
National Marine Sanctuary”]
The lagoon is really a great place for birders.
[Dozens of white seabirds glide over the lagoon]
Bolinas Lagoon is a big stopover spot
along the Pacific Flyway.
[A duck dives into the water. Flocks of brown seabirds descend onto the water, and three birds perch on rusted metal jutting out from the lagoon]
So we get a lot of great seabirds as well,
pelicans, cormorants,
and then we get a big harbor seal population as well.
[Harbor seals float in the lagoon, with only their snouts visible above the water]
Not only do they come here to rest and haul out
and protect themselves from the white sharks out there in Bolinas Bay,
but we get close to 200 pups that are born here every year as well.
[A person speaks with the lagoon in the background. In the bottom left corner, white text reads,
“Kate Bimrose
Resource Protection Specialist”]
We are at Bolinas Lagoon
which is an 1,100 acre estuary in West Marin
just about 15 miles north of San Francisco.
[Camera pans slowly over a long-distance shot of the estuary. Behind the lagoon, there is a hill covered in trees]
The lagoon was part of Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary
when it was dedicated in 1981.
[Waves roll onto a sandy beach. Then, a green sign on a wooden post is shown that reads,
“Welcome to Bolinas Lagoon”]
The sanctuary works really closely with the National Park Service
and local Marin County.
[Video cuts back to the shot of waves rolling onto the beach. The coast is visible in the background, along with a long pier]
Those three agencies manage the lagoon,
and as part of that management we work to incorporate the community
in pretty much everything we do.
[Water splashes onto a boat ramp. The gate is covered with a colorful banner that says “Bolinas”. The video cuts back to Kate Bimrose speaking]
So there's a big combination of sort of human-induced impacts
and then there's also environmental impacts.
[A large piece of driftwood, resembling a tree stump with roots, sits on the lagoon’s shore. Then, the video cuts to a van driving across a roadway that borders the lagoon]
There's a lot of local coastal towns that abut the lagoon.
[Video switches between different shots of cars driving on the highway that borders the lagoon]
The lagoon itself has a hardened shoreline
because of Highway 1 and because of those towns,
it's pretty restricted.
So when you're talking about climate change, sea level rise,
increased storm surge, flooding,
the lagoon really doesn't have anywhere to go
and so a lot of the wildlife doesn't really have much space to retreat as well.
[A group of people work with plants in a taped-off section of vegetation. A volunteer poses next to a pile of removed invasive plants, and then a group of people look out on the lagoon from the shore. The camera returns to Kate Bimrose]
We're doing habitat restoration, invasive species removal, living shorelines projects.
We're doing some road removal and realignment of creeks
to reestablish reconnectivity.
[Volunteers stand with a pile of removed invasive plants. Then, a large group of people watch a presentation at the lagoon]
And we're really folding in all of the different public and local organizations
so that they can be a part of the process too.
[A marsh-like section of the estuary is shown, with rolling hills in the background]
I think we've done a lot of great work over the last decade or so.
We have a great partnership with all the different agencies.
[Grasses and foliage bordering the lagoon rustle in the breeze]
Our relationships with the community members are strengthening day in and day out.
So I just want to continue on the great progress we're doing.
So that's what a lot of our projects are really focusing on.
[Video cuts to different shots of the lagoon, showing foliage blowing in the wind and seabirds flying overhead]
Giving the lagoon space to expand and adapt to those changes
and then allowing the wildlife to follow that.
[Screen fades to black, and white text appears reading,
“To join us in restoring Bolinas Lagoon, visit farallones.noaa.gov/eco/bolinas” Then,
“Learn more about how you can protect Bolinas Lagoon: farallones.org/bolinas”
The screen fades to black once more, then credits slide onto the screen. The Earth is Blue logo appears first, followed by “sanctuaries.noaa.gov/earthisblue”. The logos for NOAA and the National Marine Sanctuaries appear below, followed by credits:
“Footage: Nick Zachar/NOAA
Editor: Shannon Shikles/NOAA
Photos: Maria Brown/NOAA, Kate Bimrose/NOAA
Music: Killer Tracks”]

[@RecologySpencer]

Amazing! I live in Stinson Beach, and the area is just breathtakingly beautiful - especially the lagoon. We've helped out with the Seadrift Lagoon invasive crab trapping before, and I also keep a lagoon log where I journal and draw about the little lagoon - enjoyed watching this video!