Excerpt:

The floating dock will gradually be moved further out and anchored offshore, several hundred yards from the pending noisy construction zone and future ferry maintenance terminal but still visible from the land. Meanwhile, citizen monitors led by Mark Klein, who presented on harbor seals at Golden Gate Audubon’s Wild in Alameda symposium earlier this spring, are keeping track of the seals to see how they fare with the changes.

Though harbor seals were the impetus, the new haul-out benefits birds too! Species that like to roost on platforms include Double-crested Cormorants, Black Oystercatchers, Brown Pelicans, herons, egrets, and gulls.

And it benefits people, who will be able to enjoy seeing the seals from the segment of the Bay Trail that runs from Encical Beach to the Hornet.

Margulis credited GGAS’s partners in this project — the City of Alameda, WETA, and members of the Alameda Point Harbor Seal Monitors — with helping create this win-win solution.

“This is a great cooperative effort proving that when people with good will put their heads together, they can create solutions that work well for both wildlife and the public,” Margulis said