NEWPORT BAY NATURALISTS AND FRIENDS
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Mission Statement
The Newport Bay Naturalists and Friends, doing business as the Newport Bay Conservancy (NBC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of Upper Newport Bay (UNB). NBC is composed of a 13-member Board of Directors, 30 full-time and seasonal staff and 250 trained member volunteers and more than 800 individual and corporate supporters who are passionate about protecting and preserving UNB. Upper Newport Bay is one of the most valuable natural resources in Southern California being the largest of the few remaining natural coastal estuaries. In 1975, UNB was declared an ecological reserve under the supervision of the California State Department of Fish and Wildlife. Soon after, the County of Orange declared the bluffs on the northwest side of the Bay a nature preserve. Today, nearly 1,000 acres of the Bay and surrounding uplands are preserved in perpetuity for all to enjoy.
About This Cause
The Newport Bay Conservancy (NBC) is the sole organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of the Upper Newport Bay and it's watershed in Newport Beach, California. NBC conducts programs that are consistent with the four elements of our Strategic Plan in order to accomplish our mission: Education, Restoration, Research, and Watershed Management/Advocacy. NBC Programs serve a wide population and diverse demographic in Southern California mostly within Orange County and communities located within the watershed. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS NBC’s educational programs are typically focused on education of the public about the ecological value of the Upper Newport Bay and include intensive naturalist docent training, guided trail and kayak tours, marine life inventories of the Bay, topical workshops and symposia on issues relative to the Bay, and special events that attract the public to become aware of the Bay and its importance. We serve in excess of 5,000 students during the year with educational programs focused on all ages. Since Newport Beach is a popular beach destination, NBC hosts over 700 interpretive public kayak tours each year whereas at least 50% of them are tourists. For the past six years, NBC has conducted a high school students to the Bay for docent-led on-water tours and on-land mentored field studies. In that time, NBC has taught in excess of 6,000 high school students the intricacies of the unique estuarine environment and why it is important to protect and preserve. RESTORATION NBC collaborates with both the all the landowners of the Bay and stakeholders to enhance the natural beauty and ecological function of the Bay. We facilitate large scale restoration projects like the Big Canyon Restoration Project to smaller scale-stewardship events with local students and the public restore the native ecosystems of the Bay and its watershed. NBC provides numerous volunteers some of whom function as project leaders. NBC’s experienced restoration volunteers often serve as leader/facilitators to plant approximately 4,000 native shrub species in the Bay annually with the help of the general public. NBC also runs a native plant nursery in partnership with Project Grow to supplement the species planted in the Bay. RESEARCH The NBC conducts original research projects in the Bay utilizing scientists and students from local universities. The committee also organizes and sponsors research symposia and scientific workshops for the public to become informed about the Bay - WORLD WETLANDS DAY. One of our most recent studies dove into DNA bar-coding larvae extracted from the Bay to determine what zooplankton use the Bay as a nursery. NBC also regularly monitors wildlife through around the Bay. Recently, we installed a camera on our local Osprey nest to get a closer look into the birds life, partnering with local schools to develop monitoring and citizen science protocols to learn more about these fascinating creatures saved by science and policy-making. WATERSHED MANAGEMENT/ADVOCACY NBC conducts on-going programs to monitor the condition of the watershed via the position of Watershed Coordinator which the position is funded by the California Department of Conservation. On top of this, NBC is constantly going out within the watershed to do outreach and education; we organize and conducted annual Earth Day program that celebrate multiple conservation efforts in the vicinity of the Upper Newport Bay with regular attendance of 1,500 - 2,000 visitors each year. Planned and managed annual Clean-up Days with Orange County Parks, CA Fish and Wildlife, City of Newport Beach that were attended by over 800 local volunteers last year and removed 14,000 pounds of trash from the UNB. Happy Trails, Newportbay.org