Carmel Magazine

138 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S U M M E R / F A L L 2 0 1 5 reefs, kelp forests and deep canyons—is majestic and exciting. I have been looking for a wedge to help people visualize that." To that end, Lindholm has been working with the Carmel City Council to develop a campaign to clue people in on what's going on under those blue waters. "Kind of like the virtual ability to strap on a mask and fins and see what's going on under there," he explains. "The Council is thinking about smart- phone app-driven tours of the city. I like the idea of self-guided tours of the underwater world just offshore of where you might be standing, such as Carmel Beach or the Butterfly House." A project the professor is undertaking this summer will incidentally provide information for such a system. He and a team of CSUMB colleagues and students are diving off the shores of Carmel, armed with a stereo video system, leading-edge technology that allows the more accurate sizing of the animals and for- mations they encounter. The device is comprised of two video cameras in underwater housings mounted on a crossbeam approximately a meter apart. Divers swim proscribed paths, and the information is collated. "The data is not the images themselves," Lindholm says, "but rather the information we extract from them." This summer's outing is part of a much larger study conducted under the auspices of IfAME. "We have data across 10 degrees of latitude (nearly 700 miles) of the Pacific coast," he says. This allows researchers to measure the impacts of climate change over a wide area. Earlier this year, data was collected by IfAME at four sites: Gerstle Cove (within the Salt Point State Park north of Jenner), the Hopkins State Marine Reserve in Pacific Grove, Leo Carrillo State Beach near Malibu and San Diego's La Jolla Cove. "The long-term plan for this project is to continue to revisit each of those sites annually ad infinitum," Lindholm says. "However, given the abundance of interesting habitat here on the Peninsula and the fact that my team and I live here, our parallel plan is to seasonally collect similar data and imagery around the Peninsula, including Carmel and Carmel Bay." And in addition to providing valuable information about the health of our marine environment in the face of climate change and other factors, that information could easily be translated into materials that can inform and enlighten those who might not be willing or able to brave the frigid waters off our coast. For more information about IfAME, visit sep.csumb.edu/ifame. The nutrient-filled waters of Monterey Bay and the Pacific Ocean support a plethora of marine life, such as this China rockfish near Point Pinos. The CSUMB program aims to provide a long-term record of the health of our sea life. Photo: Institute for Applied Marine Ecology at CSU Monterey Bay The scientist believes that the waters off of Carmel's Monastery Beach and Point Lobos comprise some of the best SCUBA diving in the world.

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