Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary: Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network (SIMoN)

The Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network (SIMoN) is an integrated, long-term program that takes an ecosystem approach to identify and understand changes to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. There are more than forty institutions and organizations in the greater Monterey Bay area that are currently examining various aspects of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Marine research conducted in the sanctuary includes long-term monitoring programs that are essential to furthering our understanding, and to determining the health, of the marine ecosystem. SIMoN enables researchers to monitor the sanctuary effectively by integrating the existing monitoring programs and identifying gaps in information. By avoiding duplication of these programs, resources can be more effectively directed towards surveying and characterizing habitats, assessing the impact of natural processes or human activities on specific resources, and long-term monitoring. Finally, SIMoN serves to make the monitoring data available to managers, decision makers, the research community, and the general public. Current projects, maps and graphs, and educational information are organized by subject on the website. In addition, three interactive maps are available which allow users to visualize, analyze and extract spatial data. The SIMoN Standard Viewer provides a wide variety of GIS data layers of various themes and focus. This viewer is useful for comparing spatial data from a wide variety of scientific disciplines. The SIMoN Water Quality Viewer provides GIS data layers relevant to water quality issues in and around the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Finally the R/V McArthur II Research Cruise Viewer provides GIS data layers and links to video clips and images obtained from the April, 2004 McArthur II survey conducted in the Monterey Bay, Cordell Bank and Gulf of the Farallones national marine sanctuaries.

The Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network (SIMoN) has been designed in partnership with the regional science and management community to identify natural and human induced changes to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS). The integration of high quality scientific research and long-term monitoring data sets through this program will furnish the information needed for effective management and provide a greater basic understanding of the Sanctuary, its resources and its processes.

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The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) is a federally protected marine area offshore of California's central coast. Stretching from Marin to Cambria, the MBNMS encompasses a shoreline length of 276 miles and 5,322 square miles of ocean. Supporting one of the world's most diverse marine ecosystems, it is home to numerous mammals, seabirds, fishes, invertebrates and plants in a remarkably productive coastal environment.

The project reports do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries or the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Foundation. No warranties are expressed or implied regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information provided or linked to through the SIMoN web portal. The user assumes the entire risk related to use of the data or any information. Please see the metadata records for each data set for complete information on the source, limitations, and proper use. NOAA disclaims liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will NOAA be liable to you or to any third party for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special exemplary damages or lost profit resulting from any use or misuse of the data or any information presented or linked to in the web portal.

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Until results are peer reviewed and published, they should not be considered conclusive.

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