Beyond the Golden Gate Introduction 



Herman A. Karl and Edward Ueber 



The beauty and power of the ocean fascinate 

 many people. The sea has been a source of 

 sustenance, recreation, contemplation, and 

 inspiration, as well as a challenge for explo- 

 ration and discovery, for mankind since pre- 

 history. Although much has been discovered 

 and reported about them, the sea, the life in 

 the sea, and the landscape beneath the sea 

 continue to be largely shrouded in mystery. 

 Despite the fact that the oceans occupy 7 1 

 percent of the Earth's surface and are crucial 

 to our survival, we invest more in learning 

 about other planets than we invest in learn- 

 ing about the world beneath the sea. 



Perhaps more than any other open space 

 remaining on our planet, the oceans are a 

 common-use area for both work and play 

 for much of the world's population. This 

 observation is particularly true in those areas 

 of the coastal ocean off major urban com- 

 plexes. In these multiuse "urban oceans," 

 environmental and ecological concerns must 

 be balanced against the human, economic, 

 and industrial demands of adjacent large 

 population centers. With ever-increasing 

 stress being placed on the ecosystems of the 

 oceans by human activities, many areas of 

 the oceans around the United States have 

 been designated as protected sanctuaries and 

 reserves. Three contiguous National Marine 

 Sanctuaries Cordell Bank, Gulf of the Far- 

 allones, and Monterey Bay stretch more 



than 185 miles from Bodega Bay north of 

 San Francisco to Cambria south of Mon- 

 terey. They protect an area larger than the 

 States of Connecticut and Rhode Island 

 combined, about 7,000 square miles of the 

 California coastal ocean. 



The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 

 began a major geologic and oceanographic 

 study of the Gulf of the Farallones in 1989. 

 This investigation, the first of several now 

 being conducted adjacent to major popula- 

 tion centers by the USGS, was undertaken to 

 establish a scientific data base for an area of 

 1,000 square nautical miles on the Continen- 

 tal Shelf adjacent to the San Francisco Bay 

 region. The results of this study can be used 

 to evaluate and monitor human impact on 

 the marine environment. 



In 1990, the project expanded in scope 

 when the USGS sponsored a multidis- 

 ciplinary investigation with four other Fed- 

 eral agencies Environmental Protection 

 Agency, Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. 

 Navy, and Gulf of the Farallones National 

 Marine Sanctuary (part of the National Oce- 

 anic and Atmospheric Administration) to 

 survey and sample the Continental Slope 

 west of the Farallon Islands. This study 

 was primarily designed to provide infor- 

 mation on the location and distribution of 

 approximately 47,800 containers of low- 

 level radioactive waste and obtain data on 



areas being considered as potential sites for 

 the disposal of sediments dredged from San 

 Francisco Bay. 



Many other organizations eventually par- 

 ticipated in this work, including Point Reyes 

 Bird Observatory, California Department of 

 Health Services, and the British Geological 

 Survey. The information from these studies 

 is being used by the Gulf of the Farallones 

 National Marine Sanctuary to better manage 

 and protect the unique ecological resources 

 of the gulf. This information was also used 

 in 1994 by the Environmental Protection 

 Agency in designating the first deep-ocean 

 disposal site for dredged material on the 

 Pacific coast of the United States, west of 

 San Francisco on the Continental Slope out- 

 side the boundaries of the sanctuary. 



This USGS Circular endeavors to pull 

 back the shroud of mystery that covers the 

 ocean waters seaward of the Golden Gate, 

 revealing to the reader some of the diverse 

 habitats and ecosystems in the Gulf of the 

 Farallones and discussing issues of contam- 

 ination and waste disposal. The sections 

 of this book cover the topics of Oceanogra- 

 phy and Geology, Biology and Ecological 

 Niches, and Issues of Environmental Man- 

 agement in the Gulf of the Farallones. 



The chapters in the paper version of the 

 book are short, less technical summaries. 

 The full chapters are contained on the 



CD-ROM in the pocket at the back of 

 the book. Links to the complete Circular 

 and related topics can be found at http:// 

 walrus.wr.usgs.gov. 



Acknowledgments. The view of the Gulf of 

 the Farallones presented here resulted from the 

 efforts of scores of people over a 1 2-year period, 

 from the first sampling and surveying cruise in 1989 

 to final publication of this book in 200 1 . It is not 

 possible to single out each person who contributed 

 in one way or another to this endeavor. The work 

 of each is greatly appreciated, but some deserve 

 special mention. William Schwab. David Twichell, 

 David Drake, and David Rubin served as co-chief 

 scientists with John Chin and Herman Karl on the 

 1989 and 1990 cruises and contributed significantly 

 to their design and implementation. William Dan- 

 forth and Thomas O'Brien led the teams that pro- 

 cessed sidescan-sonar data in near-real time while 

 at sea. Arthur Wright of Williamson and Associates 

 provided helpful insights during the search for bar- 

 rels of radioactive waste using the SeaMARCl A 

 sidescan sonar. Pat S. Chavez, Jr., and his group 

 did preliminary computer enhancements of sidescan 

 images that helped identify nongeologic features 

 on the sea floor, such as radioactive waste barrels. 

 John Penvenne of Triton Technologies developed 

 the principal methodology to detect barrels and clas- 

 sify objects in the SeaMARC 1 A imagery. Kaye 

 Kinoshita and Norman Maher supported the early 

 stages of assembling this book. William van Peelers 

 coordinated the use of the U.S. Navy's DSV Sea 

 Cliff and Advanced Tethered Vehicle. The USGS 

 Marine Facility in Redwood City, California, pro- 

 vided operational support on shore and at sea. 

 The officers and crews of the USGS ship R/V 

 Farnella. NOAA ship R/V McArthur, the Navy's 

 ship Pacific Escort, and the support vessel Laney 

 Chouest greatly aided the work in the gulf. 



2 Beyond the Golden Gate Introduction 



