A bed of life restored

Students from Pacifica High School in Garden Grove and Warner Middle School in Westminster have harvested kelp spores and grown them on ceramic tiles, which volunteer divers then plant on the ocean reefs.

Caruso’s group is the only one that conducts underwater monitoring, so they can determine changes from the onset of the project through completion.

Volunteers also help to educate the community, hold fundraising events to keep the project running, and have contributed time and money to the exhibit at the cove.

Caruso speaks to students at schools to spread knowledge.

She also assists with after-school programs, like the Kelp-Keep Club at Warner, that have donated their time to helping her cause.

“There has been great energy behind this project,” Caruso said. “Everybody just rallies.”

The public can help by using natural pesticides and herbicides, conserving water and decreasing run-off, not littering and by becoming knowledgeable about Marine Protected Areas.

Crystal Cove State Park Supervisor Ken Kramer said the facility is meant to give the park an opportunity to get the community involved in important environmental issues.

“We want visitors to walk away more educated, enriched and entertained,” he said. “This exhibit has been a resounding success.”

Caruso hopes to finish Heisler before moving on to Crescent Bay, but is not confident she will have the funding to complete it.

“It’s really bad — just a blanket of purple and red [sea creatures],” she said.

For more information about how you can help, or to make a donation, call Caruso at (714) 206-5147 or e-mail ncaruso@lbaop.org.

The Rotating Exhibit Facility will host different exhibits for one to three months at a time, which provide educational information about the environment or park.

To submit a proposal, contact the special events coordinator at (949) 494- 3534.