Facilities
One goal of the OWCN is to prepare for the potential caseloads of oiled wildlife in the event of a
catastrophic oil spill. Recognizing that no single oiled wildlife care center can meet the potential
caseloads which range from 1,000 to 4,000 birds in the early stages of a catastrophic oil spill, the
OWCN was founded to provide regional care facilities with substantial overflow capacity to
other centers. All of our facilities are maintained in a constant state of readiness, and wildlife
caregivers are available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Once the OWCN has been
activated for response, wildlife personnel are able to arrive at a spill site within 12 hours (usually
less than 2 hours), if required.
There are 12 primary care facilities throughout California that were either designed and built specifically for
oiled wildlife care or are facilities of our participants that have been modified in order to
facilitate spill response. OWCN facilities are multi-use in nature, thereby allowing them to
function for the managing partner organization during non-spill periods. This arrangement
benefits both the OWCN and the participant, allowing for shared, cost-effective maintenance and
the ready availability of trained volunteers and staff on-site (thereby reducing start-up time
during spills).
Primary Care Facilities
- Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center (Santa Cruz)
- San Francisco Bay Oiled Wildlife Care and Education Center (Fairfield)
- Los Angeles Oiled Bird Care and Education Center (San Pedro)
- North Coast Marine Mammal Center (Crescent City)
- Marine Wildlife Care Center (Arcata)
- The Marine Mammal Center (Sausalito)
- University of California at Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz)
- Pacific Wildlife Care Oiled Bird Care Center (Morro Bay)
- University of California at Santa Barbara (Goleta)
- The Marine Mammal Care Center at Fort MacArthur (San Pedro)
- Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center of Orange County (Huntington Beach)
- SeaWorld of California (San Diego)