Join us this Thursday, Oct. 2 in Santa Rosa

What: Attend a Fish & Game Commission meeting to say “no further cuts to California’s new Marine Protected Areas.”
When: October 2, 2008. Arrive at 9:15 a.m.
Where: Flamingo Conference Resort, 2777 Fourth Street, Santa Rosa
RSVP and details: www.caloceans.org/attend

South Coast MLPA press kit

A new press kit for the South Coast region (PDF) of the Marine Life Protection Act Initiative is now online. Lots of other information is also available on our newly expanded Press Resources page.

KQED: Our coast deserves strong protection

This is a great KQED opinion piece that talks about our history of protecting special places on land... and how today we are creating the same legacy for our ocean.

It aired back in March, before the Fish & Game Commission received the recommended plan to protect California's north central coast. Some of the places mentioned in this story were included in the plan, but not all of them. That's why it is so important that the compromise plan be adopted with no further cuts.




Here is a link to download an MP3 of the story.

South Coast MLPA process now underway

The process to protect ocean wildlife in California's south coast is officially underway. Earlier this week at the inaugural Blue Ribbon Task Force meeting, the new Science Advisory Team was announced.

According to Fish & Game, "Members of the SAT are charged with assisting DFG and the MLPA Blue Ribbon Task Force by reviewing and commenting on science relevant to implementing the MLPA, reviewing alternative MPA proposals and addressing scientific questions raised by the task force or the regional stakeholder group."

Here is our team of science experts for the south coast:

• Dr. Larry Allen, California State University, Northridge
• Dr. Richard Ambrose, UCLA, Department of Environmental Health Sciences
• Dr. Eric Bjorkstedt, Humboldt State University/NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
• Dr. Mark Carr, University of California, Santa Cruz
• Dr. Susan Chivers, NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
• Dr. Christopher Costello, University of California, Santa Barbara
• Dr. Paul Dayton, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego
• Dr. Steve Gaines, University of California, Santa Barbara
• Mr. Dominic Gregorio, State Water Resources Control Board
• Dr. Ray Hilborn, University of Washington
• Dr. John Largier, Bodega Marine Laboratory, University of California, Davis
• Dr. Steven Morgan, Bodega Marine Laboratory, University of California, Davis
• Dr. Steven Murray, California State University, Fullerton
• Dr. Daniel Pondella, Occidental College
• Dr. Peter Raimondi, University of California, Santa Cruz
• Mr. Dan Robinette, Point Reyes Bird Observatory/Vandenberg Field Station
• Dr. Astrid Scholz, Ecotrust
• Dr. Stephen Stohs, NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
• Dr. Stephen Weisberg, Southern California Coastal Water Research Project
• Mr. Stephen Wertz, California Department of Fish and Game

For more info: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/news08/08086.html

Op-Ed: Loving the coast to death

by Shelley Luce
Published in the Daily Breeze
October 30, 2008

The health of our ocean is vital to our regional economy, local environment and collective well-being. Our coastal waters are a cherished public resource, and their protection requires a combined effort.

As a swimmer, a surfer and a scientist, I have seen the degradation of our ocean firsthand. I see the trash on our beaches, swimmers getting sick from dirty water and barren rocks where kelp forests should thrive. And I know how very important it is that we address the many problems that our oceans face before it's too late.

Southern Californians love our ocean, and right now we are at risk of loving it to death. Fishermen are catching less than half of what they did in 1990 and the fish they do catch are 45 percent smaller. In order to fix this problem, we need to get pro-active about ocean health, which means both continuing our work to improve water quality and creating a balanced, science-based network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).

There is a lot of good work already under way, especially in the area of water quality. But water quality is not the only threat facing our oceans. Those efforts will soon be complemented by the creation of protected areas that will help restore balance to the web of undersea life.

Marine Protected Areas are like underwater parks, open for visitation, appreciation and enjoyment. They protect key habitat so that marine life can recover, but still leave the vast majority of the ocean open to fishing and other commercial and recreational activities. Studies of MPAs around the world have shown that when one relatively small area is protected from harvest, the fish and wildlife there multiply, becoming bigger, more fertile and more resilient. Those healthy animals then spread out and bolster populations for miles around.

By providing a place for marine life to thrive, MPAs give people a chance to experience healthy ocean ecosystems. Some of the best snorkeling, diving and wildlife watching sites are found in protected areas, like the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Goat Island in New Zealand, and the Channel Islands and Point Lobos here in California. Tourists and locals alike flock to these lush underwater parks to enjoy their beauty all year round.

To successfully establish refuges for marine life and habitat, the people who use these resources need to be involved. Over the next year, local business owners, divers, surfers, kayakers, commercial and sport fishermen and conservationists will work together to develop a plan for ocean protection that works for all of us, now and in the future.

Our coastline is a defining feature in this region, and the reason that many of us choose to call places like Ventura, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara home. But the ocean is not an infinite resource. It requires careful stewardship, and it's time our generation stepped up and committed to sustainable management.

MPAs will help ensure that future generations experience the same bounty we've enjoyed. The Marine Life Protection Act is the tool that is bringing MPAs to the South Coast, and I encourage everyone to get involved. Learn about the process, attend a meeting and make sure your voice is heard. To get involved, visit http://www.caloceans.org/

Shelley Luce is executive director of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission.