National Estuary Program Welcomes New Director

by the Morro Bay National Estuary Program

The Morro Bay National Estuary Program welcomes Adrienne Harris as its new program director.  The Estuary Program is a collaborative partnership of local citizens, businesses, government agencies, and non-profits working together to protect and restore the Morro Bay Estuary and watershed. 

Adrienne brings to the program a decade of experience in water quality and ocean protection at the international, national, state, and local levels. She is excited to be working with the many partners who make the collaborative efforts of the Estuary Program such a success. "Over the coming months, I look forward to meeting our many partners in the community and learning more about the important work they are doing here along the central coast," she says. 

Adrienne was selected after an extensive review process. She comes to the Estuary Program from Washington, D.C. where she served as a policy analyst for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Adrienne also served as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer in the Philippines helping farmers and fishermen conserve their natural resources while encouraging economic progress. Adrienne has a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University and a Masters in Environmental Management from Duke University.   

During her career, Adrienne has worked with government officials, non-profit interest groups, and concerned community members on a number of important environmental issues.  "I look forward to working with the residents of the Morro Bay Watershed to advance their vision of a healthy estuary," she says.  She is an avid scuba diver, hiker, and traveler. 

Lexie Bell will support Harris in the newly created Assistant Program Director position.

Before coming to the Estuary Program, Lexie completed the Knauss Marine Policy fellowship in Washington, D.C. as an education specialist in the Office of Education of NOAA. She has also completed research concerning tropical coral reefs, seagrass communities, and human perceptions and attitudes of coastal resources management. She previously worked for the Central Caribbean Marine Institute in the Cayman Islands, the Air Pollution Control District in Santa Barbara and the California chapter of The Nature Conservancy.

Lexie grew up in South Florida and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Miami in Marine Science and Biology, followed by a Master of Environmental Science and Management from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She loves hiking, biking and wandering the beaches of the Central Coast.

The Estuary Program is one of 28 National Estuary Programs around the country working to safeguard and improve the health of our nation’s most important coastal waters.   The Estuary Program worked with the local community to develop a comprehensive management plan that identifies habitat loss, sedimentation, and other pollutants such as bacteria, nutrients, and urban runoff, as the priority threats facing the bay.  The plan, formally published in 2000, recommends over 60 specific Action Plans to address these threats.  In 2011, the Estuary Program will kick-off a review of its management plan, the first review since the plan's authorization.   We hope the community will participate to make sure the update effectively captures the future needs of the watershed and its citizens.      

The Estuary Program has made significant progress towards implementing its management plan. Over 3,000 acres of critical watershed habitat have been permanently protected through acquisitions and conservation easements.  The Estuary Program staff, funds, and partners have helped implement dozens of restoration projects, including restoring degraded salt marsh habitat, repairing stream banks to reduce erosion and improve steelhead trout habitat, and helping watershed landowners improve their land management practices.  The Estuary Program has also awarded 49 grants totaling over $1 million for local projects ranging from stream restoration and pollution reduction to funding school field trips and creating an estuary learning center for children at the Los Osos Library. 

The Estuary Program office and Estuary Nature Center are in the Marina Square building on the Embarcadero in Morro Bay.  For more information call 772-3834 or visit the Morro Bay National Estuary Program website.