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Captain Ed Cooper Dies
On January 28 Captain Ed Cooper passed away after a long illness. Captain Ed was first and foremost a diver. He served divers as a dive boat skipper of great competence, whose charges rarely returned to the dock without a big grin on their faces. He had a way of making everyone feel loved and valued.
Ed poured endless energy into work for the benefit of divers. He was the driving force behind the Northern California Scuba Retailers Association, which sponsored several shows held at the Monterey Conference Center. He volunteered as the Diver Rep to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council from the day the sanctuary came into existence. Ed was one of the originators of the idea of having a no-take area in the water in front of Cannery Row.
The Ed Ricketts Park proposal became a “Marine Reserve” proposal and Ed became a central figure in The Friends of the Edward F. Ricketts Marine Reserve. “Tireless” seems too weak an adjective to describe Ed’s work in this area. His passion inspired literally hundreds of people to join in that effort. It is regrettable that Ed did not live to see his dream of a no-take area for recreation and marine life recovery realized. Ed was also the author of a the “Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary Diver’s Map” and a book on Monterey dive sites.
“Inspirational” applies to the way Ed dealt with his illness, too. Even though his body was distorted with cancer and racked with pain, Ed was still cracking jokes, thinking about Ricketts Reserve, and making plans to be on the ocean that buoyed up his body and his spirits. The man simply did not know how to quit or be a negative influence. His fight to live with cancer had inspired a lot of people by “just doing what I had to do. I didn’t see any other choice.” Ed was more alive while dying than a lot of people are when well.
Perhaps the best way to honor Ed’s memory is to carry on Ed’s work and do something for the diving community as a whole. Find out about The Friends of the Edward F. Ricketts Marine Reserve at www.rickettsreserve.org and help make the reserve a reality.—Marc Shargel
Sardines, Anchovies Go Through Cycles
Recent studies have suggested that anchovies and sardines appear to take turns being plentiful across the Pacific Ocean. If the researchers are right, anchovies will be on the ascent for the next couple of decades. Francisco P. Chavez and a team of researchers at Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Center in Moss Point, CA, reported that for 25 years or so, the ocean waters tended to be a bit warmer than average, which is best for sardines to thrive. Then things cool somewhat and the scale tilts toward the little anchovy for about another quarter century. The study shows cool, anchovy-rich periods from about 1900 to 1925 and from 1950 to 1975. Warmth-seeking sardines ruled from 1925 to 1950 and from 1975 to the mid-1990s.
El Niño Now Strong in California
The global weather anomaly El Niño has strengthened and is expected to worsen the drought in the U.S. plains states, while drenching California and the southeast through the spring. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said El Niño, which is blamed for vicious droughts and floods worldwide, would linger through April. “Sea-surface temperatures indicate the mature phase of El Niño is in place,” said Jim Laver, director of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. So far our early winter was very wet, with a relatively dry January. Looks like March may be wetter.
Stanford Study Says More Marine Reserves Needed
A new strategy of setting aside “no take” marine reserves offers hope for saving ocean ecosystems and depleted stocks of commercial fish according to a study by Stephen Palumbi at Stanford University. If states and the federal government follow California’s lead in passing laws to establish marine reserves, they could relieve a crisis in the oceans by replenishing fished-out species, rich coral reefs, and giant kelp forests the study says. “Marine reserves are one management tool that intrinsically helps protect ecosystems from over exploitation that reduces populations, alters habits, and causes widespread ecological change.”