PubTalk 1/2005 — Deciphering an Estuarine Ecosystem

35 Years of San Francisco Bay Studies

By John Conomos, Scientist Emeritus

• USGS research in the Bay system began in the 1960s with a search for underwater earthquake faults
• In the 1970s, the research team expanded to cover studies of water properties and quality, water mixing and flow, and estuarine ecology
• Early scientifc findings clashed with assumptions behind massive and unbridled modifcations of the Bay system and served to stimulate much public debate
• The USGS Bay research program and its scientists became renowned-- they have set the standards for the study of estuaries
• Thirty-five years of scientifc data and publications form a unique resource for decisions by legislators, planners, and coastalzone managers