A message of preservation

Environmentalists, hoteliers and members of the city’s marine protection department are hoping a seven-minute video will educate young visitors about the city’s tide pools and how to enjoy the fragile tidal zones without harming them.

The video features original music sung by Cheryl Procaccini, a local children’s musician. In the video, she sings, “Walk gently, treat it with care, so tide pool life will always be there.”

Procaccini said she trained as a volunteer tide pool docent with Laguna Ocean Foundation in 2004.

“I fell in love with the tide pool creatures, and wrote that song from a sense of awe, protection and care.”

The video has a gentle, non-preachy message and shows kids looking at, but not touching or picking up, tide pool creatures.

The Ocean Laguna Foundation and the Laguna Beach Visitors & Conference Bureau partnered on the video — funded by a grant from the city — which is intended to be distributed to every youthful visitor in the city, including school groups.

The video itself was created from film footage donated by Jeffrey Lehmann, host of PBS’ “Explorer,” a global travel show that aired a segment on Laguna Beach, said Judy Bijlani, executive director of the Visitors & Conference Bureau.

Lehmann’s Barnstormer Productions produced the video, which he narrates. Appearing alongside him is tide pool docent and local artist Jan Sattler. Lagunatics writer Chris Quilter wrote the script.

Laguna Ocean Foundation plans to distribute hundreds of the DVDs to schools, which bring many students to the tide pools on field trips.

The foundation had been trying to create an educational tool for the tide pools for five years, said foundation Chairman Fred Sattler, Jan’s husband.

“Our board wanted to distribute a message to visitors, and it took five years but was worth the wait,” Fred Sattler said.

Marine Protection Officer Calla Allison, who enforces the rules for the tide pools, was one of the speakers at a Wednesday morning unveiling of the video at a reception at the Surf & Sand Hotel.

Allison said the city has hired three part-time marine educators just to deal with the large number of school groups that visit the tide pools.

“Tools like this DVD make a difference,” Allison said. “Kids can see how important they are in helping preserve the tide pools.”

“This project was a natural for us,” Bijlani said. “When people arrive [in Laguna Beach], they are excited and want to dive in, so pre-education is important.”

The DVDs will be included in “welcome” materials given to arriving guests at the larger hotels, such as the Montage Resort & Spa, Surf & Sand and Casa Laguna Inn.

All 29 of the city’s lodging establishments have agreed to make the DVD available in some way, said Karyn Phillipsen, president of the Visitors & Conference Bureau board.

“We want to give one [DVD] to every guest,” said Bijlani.

CINDY FRAZIER is city editor of the Coastline Pilot. She can be contacted at (949) 494-2087 or cindy.frazier@latimes.com.