SURVEYS SUBMITTED BY MPA WATCH VOLUNTEERS TO DATE
Resources
To learn more about the program, please see MPA Watch’s Summary Document.
For detailed information on how California’s MPA Watch program is implemented, please review the MPA Watch Statewide Manual.
To understand how data is collected, please see the protocols for conducting a land based MPA Watch survey.
To better understand MPA Watch’s data categories, please see the Statewide Land-Based MPA Watch Data Sheet.
To learn more about MPA Watch on the South Coast, please see the MPA Watch’s South Coast Snapshot Report.
To learn more about MPA Watch on the Central Coast, please see the MPA Watch’s Central Coast Snapshot Report.
To learn more about MPA Watch on the North Coast, please see the MPA Watch’s North Coast Snapshot Report.
External Resources
To read how researchers at UC Davis used MPA Watch data, see their 2026 published scientific paper
To find out what each coastal county is doing to conserve MPAs visit California’s MPA Collaborative network
To read how researchers in Santa Barbara and around the world used MPA Watch data, see their 2023 published scientific paper
To learn how MPA Watch was used in California’s MPA network review, visit the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s 2022 Decadal Management Review
For lesson plans, activities, and field trip ideas about MPAs visit WILDCOAST
For more information, including education and outreach materials, visit California Marine Protected Areas
Students at the Old Louisville Student Conservation Association recommend the Guide to Marine Plastic Pollution
For information about how to reduce your impact at home check out this article on The Dangers of Plastic Pollution to Marine Life