For 45 years, a small marine lab on a mile-long stretch of Marin County Bay has been developing big ideas for the San Francisco Bay Area.
Researchers at Tiburon’s Estuary and Ocean Science Center, operated by San Francisco State University, have shown how endangered sea otters might be returning to northern California, why algal blooms have proliferated in bay waters, and how seagrass beds can cushion sea-level rise.
Now the center and its 15 faculty members are at risk of losing the funds they need to operate, and the future of the lab and its work is in question. The San Francisco state administration says it cannot afford to keep the site up given the general financial problems within the university system, and it wants the institute to find a way to support itself.
“Yes, it’s an ultimatum,” said Kathy Boyer, a biology professor who serves as the research center’s interim executive director. “We’re looking at every type of option and everything we can think of to cover our costs so we can move forward.”
The alternative that no one wants to see is closure.
Boyer and her colleagues are working on a financial proposal to present to the university this month, one that includes creative revenue-generating strategies such as building housing on the site.
The university administration, together with the Office of the Chancellor of California State University, will make a final evaluation of the proposal and decide whether and how to include it in their budget. This decision is expected this summer. Lab directors are also seeking state and federal support and are exploring partnerships with private companies.
The Delta Hall at the Estuary and Ocean Science Center in Tiburon. The future of the site is uncertain due to a financial crisis.
Felix Uribe/Special on The Chronicle
“The desire, of course, is to continue to support the center,” said Carmen Domingo, dean of the College of Science and Engineering at San Francisco State. But “it has become more difficult to find a financial way to maintain the site.”
The university has not discussed what would happen to the site if the center were to close.
Known as the Romberg Tiburon Campus, the property is inherently difficult to manage. The 53-acre site is a former US Navy base. Today’s labs, classrooms, offices, and conference centers are housed in old military buildings, many of which are dilapidated and unusable.
Still, some of the characteristics that made the site a good place for the Navy – a deep water harbor for large boats and large buildings for space and storage – are ideal for research. Faculty members note that the center is the only marine and environmental science laboratory on the San Francisco Bay area, allowing research vessels to easily cruise to study sites on the Bay and in the nearby Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
Approximately 35 doctoral students study at the center, which is known not only for its research but also as a focal point for environmental professionals moving into regulatory and natural resource positions with government and non-profit organizations. Undergraduates are also an integral part of the lab, taking classes on topics such as wetland ecology and physical oceanography.
The San Francisco Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center also operate at the site.
Lab coats hang in the Delta Hall of the Estuary and Ocean Science Center in Tiburon.
Felix Uribe/Special on The Chronicle
According to the faculty, the center’s ongoing costs are approximately $2.5 million per year. Boyer and her colleagues plan to secure a steady stream of independent funding for operations and raise millions more for upgrades.
Her ultimate vision is to renovate two large former naval barracks for $20 million each and rebuild the old pier for another $20 million. They anticipate that such investments will lead to new, profitable businesses for the center, such as affordable housing.
The State of San Francisco has operated a marine laboratory on the site since 1978, when it began acquiring the land from the federal government at virtually no cost, on the condition that the site be used for educational purposes.
Boyer says it would be a shame to let go of such a valuable piece of real estate, especially as scientific know-how becomes increasingly valuable in the face of climate change for the San Francisco Bay Area and California.
“The community and the region recognize the values in what we do and they want to see a way forward,” she said. “We just don’t know what that is yet.”
Reach Kurtis Alexander: kalexander@sfchronicle.com
