California Ocean Protection Council

09/01/2026

Look closely at any California tidepool and you'll probably spot one scuttling sideways across the rocks: the striped shore crab. This small crab is one of the most common residents of California's rocky shoreline.

Striped shore crabs can survive out of water for days at a time, only returning to keep their gills moist, which lets them forage on both land and in the water. They eat algae, dead and decaying matter, and just about anything else they can find, making them an important part of the tidepool cleanup crew. They're also a key food source for shorebirds and other predators, connecting them to the rest of the intertidal food web.

📷 Photo of the Month by Sydney Rilum

ICYMI, catch this shot and more in our August newsletter: bit.ly/OPC-AUG-2026

Ready to submit your own for September? We want to showcase your best shots of California's coast and ocean in our Photo of the Month feature. More info and submission details here: opc.ca.gov/2024/08/submit-photo

09/01/2026

Request for Proposals: Offshore Development and Marine Ecosystem Management

OPC and the California Sea Grant College Program Grant are soliciting proposals for applied research that will strengthen the state’s ability to detect and understand ecological change and disturbance in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem as offshore development opportunities continue to be considered. This solicitation supports two complementary tracks to assess baseline conditions for current and/or future offshore development in California, including offshore energy.

Track 1 addresses whether existing monitoring can detect disturbance against natural and/or climate-driven variability, and Track 2 supports the collection of targeted new field data where monitoring is absent or out of date.

📅 Upcoming Dates & Deadlines:

Informational Webinar – Wednesday, September 9
Informal Office Hours: September 21, October 26, & November 3
Letter of Intent Due: October 9 by 5:00 p.m. PT
Full Proposals Due: November 17 by 5:00 p.m. PT

➡️Get the details at bit.ly/OPC-RFP-OS

08/25/2026

Summer's winding down, but there's no slowing down for California's coast and ocean.

Our August newsletter highlights updates and ways YOU can get involved!

🧬 A DNA library is being built to track biodiversity across California's intertidal zone

🌱 Nature-Based Solutions Summit coming September 2

💰 Updated SB 1 Sea Level Rise Adaptation Grant Program (Track 1) materials, next deadline September 11

📅 Next Ocean Protection Council meeting is September 18

🌊 30x30 Partnership Summit waitlist open for September 29

👋 Staff Spotlight: Meet Nicole Wilson, OPC's new Coastal Resilience Program Manager

📸 Photo of the Month by Sydney Rilum
..and more!

Read. Engage. Share.
bit.ly/OPC-AUG-2026

08/20/2026

Protect our !

The public comment deadline for the federal evaluation of the California Coastal Management Program is approaching. Written comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. PT, this Saturday, August 22, 2026.

To learn more and make your voice heard, visit: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/06/26/2026-12907/evaluation-of-the-california-coastal-management-program-notice-of-public-meetings-request-for

Watch: https://www.instagram.com/p/Db6qGQESPhv

08/18/2026

You don't have to live on or travel to the coast to participate in California Coastal Cleanup Day! You can make an impact from wherever you are, as trash flows through streets and sewers, streams and rivers, eventually making its way to our beautiful beaches and biodiverse marine ecosystems. Where will you be on September 19th?

08/13/2026

What's our "why"?

Visit opc.ca.gov!

08/11/2026

One of our OPC staff spent a recent Saturday morning kayaking Elkhorn Slough, and afterward stopped by Moss Landing, where they stumbled across the Sunflower Star Laboratory. A detour before lunch turned into a tour of the facility and a chance to see these incredible creatures in person.

Sunflower sea stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) are the largest sea star in the world, they can span more than three feet across with up to 24 arms. They were once abundant all along the California coast. Then, starting in 2013, a wasting disease swept the Pacific Coast and killed an estimated six billion sunflower sea stars, wiping out nearly 95% of the population.

OPC has provided funding toward the recovery effort, supporting captive breeding, disease research, and wild population monitoring to bring these giant stars back to California's coast.

Learn more: bit.ly/OPC-STAR

08/11/2026

Protecting California's coast? Extremely chic. Make your voice heard by August 22.

More details in the comments...

08/10/2026

Enjoying public access in Santa Monica ahead of today’s hearing?

Livestream for August 10th, 2pm:
https://events-na13.adobeconnect.com/content/connect/c1/2358677976/en/events/event/shared/10657383573/event_landing.html?sco-id=10657383410&_charset_=utf-8 (see links)

Send written comments to NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management at [email protected].

Include “Comments on Performance Evaluation of the California Coastal Management Program” in the subject line. Written comments received by 11:59 p.m. PT on August 22, 2026, will be accepted.

Californians care deeply about our coast.✨🌊

08/10/2026

Ever wonder what's really living along California's coast between the tides? Turns out, a lot more than you'd think. The intertidal zone, the stretch of shoreline that's underwater at high tide and exposed at low tide, includes sandy beaches, rocky shores, estuaries, and tidepools. Scientists just wrapped up a major sampling effort in La Jolla, part of a two-year quest to document the organisms along the state's coast for the California Intertidal Biodiversity DNA Barcode Library. The count so far: 1,600 species, and hundreds of them might be brand new to science!

These tiny invertebrates and algae may be small, but they're mighty; they're the foundation of the coastal food web. This new DNA "biolibrary," which will live at the LA County Natural History Museum, gives scientists a reference guide to track how these ecosystems are shifting over time and make management decisions in the face of climate change - including the effects of warming oceans and rising seas.

As Mike Esgro, who leads OPC's biodiversity work, put it: "The climate crisis is very real. It's very urgent. We're seeing the impacts right now... we gotta go big, we gotta swing for the fences."

Read the full story from the LAist ➡️ bit.ly/LAist-DNA

This project is made possible by $9,025,000 in funding from OPC. See the staff recommendation behind the investment: bit.ly/OPC-DNA

Scientists are building a “Noah’s Ark” of tide pools at the L.A. County Museum of Natural History that they say will be a game-changer when it comes to tracking climate change.

The first comprehensive record of California’s tidal ecosystems — from San Diego to the Oregon border — is focused on invertebrates and algae. They play a key role in the ecosystem but have been studied far less than more visible fish, birds and mammals. The reference library will include DNA profiles and physical samples and will be an open resource for scientists.

✍️ Lucas Brady Woods
📸 Lucas Brady Woods / LAist