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About Aquarium of the Bay

Location:

PIER 39, The Embarcadero at Beach Street, San Francisco, CA 94133, US

Mission Statement

Aquarium of the Bay's mission is to protect, restore, and inspire conservation of the San Francisco Bay and its watershed from the Sierra to the sea.

Description

Aquarium of the Bay is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit marine nature center dedicated to inspiring conservation of the San Francisco Bay and all marine environments. Affiliated with The Bay Institute, the Aquarium strongly emphasizes conservation, research and education as its key priorities.

With exhibitions focused on the Bay's diverse aquatic animals and distinctive ecosystems, the Aquarium hosts nearly 600,000 visitors each year, and provides free classes and tours to more than 15,000 Bay Area school children annually.

The 65,000 square foot facility features 300 feet of crystal clear acrylic tunnels holding over 700,000 gallons of filtered Bay water that is home to over 20,000 aquatic animals, including sharks, bat rays and skates. New exhibits installed in April 2009 include an octopus exhibit, a jellies exhibit and PG&E Bay Lab, an interactive climate change exhibit.

Reflecting our emphasis on conservation, the Aquarium is a Certified Green Business. The San Francisco Green Business Program seeks to achieve a healthier and cleaner environment by helping businesses integrate environmental responsibility into their operations in a manner that is sustainable as well as profitable.

The Aquarium is also accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), a difficult-to-achieve indicator that it has met AZA's exacting standards for animal management and care, including living environments, social groupings, health and nutrition.