Jazmine Mejia-Muñoz is a Water Quality Program Manger at the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation on detail for the Water Quality Protection Program at the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS). There she implements innovative solutions to critical issues affecting the interface of land and marine resources, through stakeholder engagement and education. As part of her interdisciplinary approach, she participates in rangeland restoration efforts, through the Healthy Soils Program. Here she works to demonstrate that land-based practices can improve ocean health by reducing atmospheric carbon and diminishing the rate of ocean acidification and warming.

 

In an effort to reduce land to sea marine debris sources, Jazmine leads collaborative efforts to find end-of-life solutions for agricultural field plastics. She works with agricultural stakeholders, including growers, the University of California Cooperative Extension, Washington State University, and California Polytechnic State University to conduct trials of Soil-Biodegradable-Mulch (BDM). Together, the team is researching BDMs as an alternative to non-degradable mulch used vastly in agriculture fields within the MBNMS watersheds. Additionally, with support from The Nature Conservancy and key stakeholders, Jazmine is also working on identifying and communicating ways to increase the recycling rate of drip irrigation tape used in agricultural fields across California’s Central Coast.

 

Jazmine holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from California State University, Bakersfield and a Master of Science Degree in Environmental Science from the California State University, Monterey Bay. Ms. Mejia-Muñoz is passionate about workforce diversity and is proud to be bilingual in English and Spanish.