Oceanography and Geology of the Gulf of the Farallones 



The San Francisco Bay region of California is famous for its stunning landscapes and complex geology. Adjacent to this region, in the 

 watery world of the Pacific Ocean beyond the Golden Gate, lies the Gulf of the Farallones, a physical environment equally complex and 

 fascinating, but less obvious, less visible, and therefore more mysterious. 



Scientific studies are revealing that the sea floor of the gulf, like the region onshore, was crafted by geologic forces that include movements 

 of the San Andreas Fault system, major changes in sea level, and the action of rivers. The ceaseless work of oceanic currents has further 

 sculpted the sea bottom in the gulf into landscapes that today range from flat plains and giant sand ripples to deep canyons and rugged 

 mountains, some of whose highest summits poke above the water to form the Farallon Islands. 



Biology and Ecological Niches in the Gulf of the Farallones 



Year round, thousands of people are attracted to the cold waters of the Gulf of the Farallones for its whale and bird watching, beautiful 

 coastal tide pools, and commercial and sport fishing. Few realize that the organisms that they see and catch are only a small pan of a 

 rich and complex marine ecosystem. 



Scientists have found that the distribution and abundance of marine flora and fauna in the gulf are directly related to the physical and 

 chemical conditions of its waters. Upwelling of deep nutrient-rich waters along the coast during the spring and summer months of most years 

 feeds microscopic plankton that support a complex but fragile web of organisms, from Dungeness crabs, chinook salmon, and brown pelicans 

 to elephant seals, great white sharks, and giant blue whales. The Cordell Bank, Gulf of the Farallones, and Monterey Bay National Marine 

 Sanctuaries help to protect and manage this marine abundance. 



Issues of Environmental Management in the Gulf of the Farallones 



Since the mid-1800's, when the California Gold Rush first brought frantic development to the San Francisco Bay region, the waters of the 

 bay and of the Gulf of the Farallones, beyond the Golden Gate, have been used to dispose ofmanmade waste. Perhaps of greatest concern are 

 thousands of barrels of low-level radioactive waste dumped in the gulf during several decades following the Second World War. Another issue 

 is the need to find suitable places in the gulf to dump material dredged from shipping channels in San Francisco Bay. 



To evaluate the hazard from radioactivity to the marine environment, including increasingly important fisheries, scientists have begun 

 the search for containers of radioactive waste on the sea floor of the gulf. Studies of the sea floor in the gulf have already enabled the 

 Environmental Protection Agency to designate the Nation 's first deep-ocean disposal site for dredge spoils. 



Prepared in cooperation with: 



NOAA Fisheries 



ISBN D-tD7-1SD3D-7 



PRBOT 



CONSERVATION THROUGH SCIENCE 



9 780607 950304 



Printed on recycled paper 



