Carpinteria’s Ad Hoc Harbor Seal Advisory Committee is considering recommending that the city close the Harbor Seal Rookery year-round for three years to save the declining harbor seal population.

About 1,500 feet of the beach, which contains the rookery, would be off-limits.

“The ultimate opportunity that we have here is to save this population of seals by not paying attention to everyone else’s ‘woe is me’ and do the right thing and close the beach,” said Randall Moon, a scientist and an alternate for the harbor seal committee. “It doesn’t have to be forever, but it should be long enough to see if that by itself is adequate.”

The Harbor Seal Rookery is accessible by the Carpinteria Coastal Vista Trail or Tar Pits State Park. The best way to see the seals is from the Seal Watch Overlook which can be accessed from the Coastal Vista Trail with parking available at 499 Linden Avenue.

A volunteer community group known as Carpinteria Seal Watch has observed a steady decline in the adult and pup seal population in the past several years.

In 2015, the group observed 396 adult seals and more than 80 pups. In 2021, they observed 220 adult seals and 64 pups, according to a report from the Ad Hoc Harbor Seal Advisory Data Committee.

Additionally, more seals can be found at the rookery during months where the beach is closed compared with when the beach is open. The City of Carpinteria currently closes the rookery beach area from Dec. 1 until May 31 to protect pregnant seals and pups from disturbances.

On Nov. 21, the Carpinteria Ad Hoc Harbor Seal Advisory Committee met to discuss recent changes to the local seal population and the potential of closing the rookery for three years.

This year, the data committee, part of the Ad Hoc Harbor Seal Advisory Committee, observed the seal population from March to August — to determine the population during the rookery closure and when it was opened.

From March to May, the data committee observed 186 seals, and from June to August, it observed 136 seals. 

Committee members believe that disturbances to the seals, such as loud noises, people walking through the rookery and dogs off leash, are the main causes for the population decline. They hope by closing access to the rookery for three years that the population can stabilize. 

Roxanne Bacchilega spoke during public comment at the committee meeting about how she she used to walk through the rookery during the summer months when it was allowed, until she realized how it disturbed the seals. She is now part of the Seal Watch to help educate others. 

“During this time, I have seen many alarming disturbances inside the Harbor Seal Rookery, such as consistent yoga classes led by an instructor, people jumping off the pier, people throwing mussels at the seals and attempting to feed them, even people getting close up for selfies with them,” Bacchilega said.

She also said that she often sees people wandering into the rookery because the sign states that they can and they don’t know about the seals. 

“Most people appreciate the education and support the preservation of the harbor seal rookery,” Bacchilega said. “They want to preserve it for future generations and do not enter. It’s just simply a matter of educating them.”

The committee originally wanted to recommend a seven-year closure to the City Council. However, because the city has to get permission from the California Coastal Commission to close access to the rookery, they worried that seven years would be too long, so they decided to recommend three years instead. 

The committee also agreed that educating the public about the seals and the impact of disturbances would go a long way to prevent future disturbances.  

The committee is scheduled to have one more meeting in December to finalize recommendations before they are presented to the City Council on Jan. 27.