North Coast KelpFest!
May 18 - June 16, 2024
Art + Science + Food + Film
MENDOCINO & FORT BRAGG
Come to KelpFest! to explore the beauty and benefits of this irreplaceable underwater ecosystem, and to learn about the many efforts to help it recover.
Bull kelp forests are an immensely valuable part of the ocean’s ecosystem, absorbing carbon dioxide, mitigating storm erosion along the shoreline, and providing food and habitat for an abundance of sea creatures. These dense underwater forests stretch along the North American coast from Big Sur to Alaska.
Since 2014, bull kelp forests have been devastated by warming oceans and other impacts, with losses exceeding 96% along California’s North Coast. But through community awareness, research, and recovery efforts, kelp forests can again thrive off of our shores.
Image from The Mysterious World of Bull Kelp website, courtesy of Above/Below
Healthy Bull Kelp Forest, photo by Patrick Webster