La Jolla Cove

Similar to the history of the Pacific harbor seals at Children's Pool Beach, there are challenges concerning the interactions of people with the sea lions.

As the sea lions have occupied more of La Jolla Cove, their interactions with people and property have increased significantly, with both positive and negative outcomes.

[14] These circumstances pose challenging management efforts for the City of San Diego as it seeks to protect the ecological integrity of the area while also ensuring opportunities for public use of the beaches.

[19][20] Currently the City is pursuing a shared-use policy with educational signs, interpretive docents, and law enforcement by park rangers, lifeguards, and policemen to ensure respect for the wildlife while permitting full use of the beaches.

[23][24][25] The City contracted the cleaning product company Blue Eagle to develop and apply a nontoxic bacterial solution to dissolve the poop without polluting the ocean or harming wildlife.

[26][27][28] The City additionally installed a public-access gate into a fence along the bluffs east of the cove in hopes that increased foot traffic would disperse the sea lions and reduce the smell.

[29] In 2015, the City contracted the marine and environmental consulting services of Hanan & Associates to study both the seals and sea lions in La Jolla and provide management options.

[14] Over the course of the year, they performed a research study on the populations and behaviors of Pacific harbor seals and California sea lions in and around La Jolla and offered several options and management strategies for deterring the pinnipeds from hauling out, as well as increasing public education.

[14] In the final report, published the following year, Hanan & Associates additionally noted the overall increase in pinniped populations along the entire coastline and suggested that more research would be necessary to better inform policy decisions.

[32] It concludes by noting that the City continues to pursue “the same beach-sharing approach used to deal with the [seals]” and argues that, due to behavioral differences between the species, this will ultimately be “impractical”.

[32] In a response to this position statement, and following a meeting with a member of the Task Force, the Director of the Parks and Recreation Department wrote that the City’s approach “will remain first and foremost education ... but prioritize having the beach available to visitors”.

The festival offers activities including arts and crafts tables, pictures with Santa Claus, educational exhibits, and performances of cultures.