This polygon shapefile delinates hard seafloor substrate from soft seafloor substrate as determined by four different data sources. These data sources are highly variable in accuracy. Sources included detailed geologic classification of 1-5m cell bathymetric and backscatter imagery data, geologic interpretation of 1:250,000 scale geologic maps of the continental shelf, canopy maps of macro algae (macrocystis sp. and nereocystic sp. used as a proxy for rock) and buffered locations of observed fishing locations frequented by Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessels (trips targeting nearshore rockfish sp. as a proxy for rock). This coverage was compiled for use in summarizing seafloor (hard/soft) habitat distributions within the Central Coast Study Region of the California Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative. This layer is presented in the WGS84 coordinate system for web display purposes. Downloadable data are provided in native coordinate system or projection.
