Sanctuary Economic Report

The Potential Economic Impacts of the

Proposed Central Coast National Marine Sanctuary

Prepared for the Sierra Club of California

By Jason Scorse, Ph.D. and Judith Kildow, Ph.D.

September 2014

i. Acknowledgments

The authors want to thank William Douros, Western Regional Director of National Marine Sanctuaries, for providing important financial information about sanctuary budgets; student assistant Maren Gardiner Farnum, for her research and analytical work; Professor Gary Griggs for providing information about marine institutional budgets in the Monterey Crescent; Deirdre Whalen and other Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary staff members for providing a range of information on tourism and other sanctuary activities that we could never have gotten without their assistance. We also want to thank Sarah Carr of EBM Tools Listserve and everyone who contributed citations per her request, for helping to compile our extensive bibliography on the economics of MPAs.

ii. Executive Summary

The U.S. National Marine Sanctuary designation process is being reopened after 20 years, and coastal communities across the country are being encouraged to submit nominations. In response, there is a proposal for a new California Central Coast Marine Sanctuary, stretching from the Channel Islands to the northern tip of San Luis Obispo County. This report provides our best estimates from available and extrapolated information, of the potential economic impact on San Luis Obispo County, if this proposed National Marine Sanctuary becomes a reality.

Communities seek Sanctuary designation for many reasons, including the preservation of unique cultural and natural resources, permanent prevention of offshore oil and gas development, or improving their local economies. This report focuses on the economic impacts possible from such a designation. Our results show that overall, the proposed Central Coast National Marine Sanctuary could add, at minimum 23 million dollars per year to the local economy and create almost 600 new jobs.

Please read full report here Chumash Sanctuary Econ Report 101814