[3] The monument was created by Bill Clinton via Presidential proclamation on January 11, 2000, with the authority in section two of the Antiquities Act of 1906.

[5] The proclamation added 1,665 acres (674 ha) of onshore areas to the existing monument, comprising the estuary of the Garcia River.

[8] Under federal protection, the public is allowed to use the land for bird watching, fishing, picnicking, nature photography, and wildlife observation.

[13] In January 2017, President Obama used his executive power under the 1906 Antiquities Act to designate these sites as National Monuments.

[14] Six onshore units comprise 7,924 acres (3,207 ha) of public land: Trinidad Head, Waluplh-Lighthouse Ranch, Lost Coast Headlands, Point Arena-Stornetta, Cotoni-Coast Dairies, and Piedras Blancas.

BLM is working with the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band to preserve the cultural sites of the indigenous Cotoni people.

[22] The property includes critical wildlife habitats, coastal prairies, redwood forests, riparian canyons, six watersheds, and four registered ancestral Native American archaeological sites.