Evaluating near-shore buffer zones in the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System relative to their function as marine protected areas

Richard W. Osborne, The Whale Museum
$39,768

The San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System and Wilderness Areas consist of 83 small islands and rocky reefs in San Juan, Whatcom and Skagit Counties in northwestern Washington state. These refuges were federally designated in 1976 as "no take" terrestrial reserves and are intended to confer protection to marine birds and mammals by protecting important nesting, loitering and haul-out sites. In addition to the terrestrial components of the reserves, federal guidelines recommend that each reserve be surrounded by a 200 yard buffer zone in which boating is discouraged (Murray. 1998). We propose that these buffer zones constitute defacto MPAs, and that compliance with the federal recommendation will increase substantially the amount of protection offered to living marine resources in San Juan Archipelago. The objective of the proposed study is to quantify the potential and actual contributions of these near-shore buffer zones to marine protection within the San Juan Archipelago. We believe that the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System provides a politically feasible means of enhancing protection for marine resources through the implementation of existing management strategies, without requiring that new protected areas be set aside or removed from public use. This project builds upon a 5-year effort by The Whale Museum's Soundwatch Boater Education Program to opportunistically implement the refuge system buffers through education (Osborne et al., 2001), and a pilot study initiated in 2001 by The Whale Museum and the Washington Maritime National Wildlife Refuge System to promote voluntary compliance in buffer zones around two of the reserves. Here we propose to 1) formally map and evaluate the physical and biological attributes within buffer zones throughout the refuge system based on existing data, 2) undertake systematic surveys of vessel activity around the reserves, and 3) intensively patrol and educate the boating public at five of the reserves. The products of this work will be provided to federal, state, and local agencies and other interested parties, will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals, and will partially fulfill the requirement for a Master of Marine Affairs at the University of Washington.

Don, C. N. 2002. Evaluation of near-shore buffer zones of the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge relative to their function as a marine protected area. Master's Thesis. School of Marine Affairs. University of Washington. 91pp. (Abstract only, Thesis body( 4.4MB), References & Appendices) (2.4MB)

Don, C. 2002. Could the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge serve to protect marine areas? Building on existing institutions to create marine protected areas. 18th International Conference of The Coastal Society. Galveston, TX.

Don, C. November 2002. Could the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge serve to protect marine areas? Building on Existing Institutions to Create Marine Protected Areas. San Juan County Marine Resources Committee Meeting. Friday Harbor, WA.

Osborne, R. 2002. Evaluating near-shore buffer zones in the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System relative to their function as marine protected areas. 1st Biennial Marine Ecosystem Health Program Science Symposium. Orcas Island, WA.

Osborne, R. 2002. Evaluation of near-shore buffer zones in the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System relative to their function as marine protected areas. School of Marine Affairs, University of Washington. Seattle, WA.

Osborne, R., Koski. May 2003. The evolution of adaptive management practices for vessel-based wildlife viewing in the boundary waters of British Columbia and Washington state. Fifth International Conference on Science and Management of Protected Areas. Victoria, BC.

Osborne, R. May 2003. Evaluation of near-shore buffer zones in the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge System relative to their function as marine protected area network. Fifth International Conference on Science and Management of Protected Areas. Victoria, BC.

Evaluating near-shore buffer zones in the San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge system relative to their function as marine protected areas (MPAs)

The San Juan Islands National Wildlife Refuge is made up of 83 islands and reefs within the San Juan Archipelago, and was established to provide protection for migratory birds. The USFWS advises ocean-going vessels to stay 200 yards offshore from nearly all of these islands and reefs. For some time now, it has been suggested that this marine "buffer zone" around the refuge should be mandated as a no-take marine protected area (MPA), but the area had never been scientifically evaluated to determine the biological contribution this could make to a regional network of MPAs.

Two years ago the SeaDoc Society funded researchers from the Whale Museum and the University of Washington to inventory the refuge for unique marine habitats and species of special interest. The research concluded that these buffer zones contain important marine resources that could make an important contribution to a regional network of marine reserves.

Thanks to this project, the USFWS is considering including near-shore marine buffer zones in its new comprehensive conservation plan for the refuge. Additionally, the Whale Museum and People for Puget Sound, two local non-governmental organizations, have used the data from this research project to petition Washington government officials to list these areas as mandatory no-take marine protected areas.