CHAPTER 6 



HUMAN USE, MANAGEMENT, AND POLLUTION 



Yet, if in any country a forest was destroyed, I do not believe 

 nearly so many species of animals would perish as would here 

 from the destruction of the kelp. Darwin (1860). 



6.1 INTRODUCTION: MANAGEMENT AND 

 MANAGEMENT AGENCIES 



Giant kelp forests are an important 

 economic and recreational resource. North 

 and Hubbs (1968) estimated the value of 

 marine resources taken from kelp forests 

 near La Jolla in 1955-56 at nearly a 

 million dollars. In current dollars and 

 including the related values of boats, 

 diving equipment, tourism, etc., this 

 dollar value is certainly much higher (see 

 also estimates in North 1971b). Moreover, 

 living near the ocean is desirable, and 

 disposing of wastes in nearshore areas is 

 both convenient and inexpensive relative 

 to land disposal or recycling. Kelp 

 forests are thus heavily used, some uses 

 are in conflict with others, and 

 management is required to prevent 

 deterioration. This is particularly true 

 in highly populated southern California. 



The preceding chapters have reviewed 

 the diversity and dynamics of the giant 

 kelp forest community, and it should be 

 clear that various biotic and abiotic 

 factors may interact to structure the 

 community at a particular site. It should 

 also be clear that, for most of these 

 factors and interactions, we know only 

 what is plausible, and are far from making 

 quantitative predictions about community 

 dynamics and the effects of particular 

 perturbations. In this context, 

 management is presently an illusion. 

 Predicting the effects of all but very 

 extreme changes in the abiotic environment 

 or in particular species is nearly 



impossible. However, man continues to 

 harvest organisms from, and discharge 

 wastes into, kelp forests, adding to the 

 dynamics of the system. Moreover, many of 

 the groups involved in these activities 

 are politically and/or economically 

 powerful, making management decisions even 

 more difficult and partly removed from the 

 meager environmental data that are 

 available. 



Management is further complicated 

 because, except for surface canopies, 

 observations of community and population 

 changes must be made while under water. 

 Even occasional surveys in a few forests 

 require trained divers and considerable 

 equipment. In addition (and for the same 

 reasons), background information against 

 which to measure change is lacking, and 

 there may be multiple factors causing 

 change at a particular site (e.g., 

 fishing, sediment from river discharge, 

 waste discharge) or in a particular region 

 (e.g., cumulative waste discharge in 

 southern California, changing oceano- 

 graphic conditions). Fay et al . (1972) 

 review these multiple pollution problems 

 in southern California. 



Management of biotic resources has 

 been largely by regulation based on catch 

 statistics for particular species. The 

 State of California Department of Fish and 

 Game has primary responsibility for most 

 biotic resources, and can regulate numbers 

 of fishermen, catch size, and areas 

 fished. The Department of Fish and Game 

 also maintains a marine mammal research 



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