Marine Life Protection Act (Southern California) continues to pick up support

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 10, 2010 at 6:03 am

From Roy Heimstra, this commentary:

“Last week in Ontario, the California Fish and Game Commission held its first southern California meeting of the year on the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA). The room was packed with south coast residents eager to weigh in on ocean protection plans, and the Commission heard over four hours of public testimony from more than seventy-five people.

Many divers, surfers and conservationists were there to lobby for stronger protections that would meet scientists’ recommendations, urging the Commission to look again at plans for south La Jolla, Rocky Point, and Catalina Island. While the compromise plan currently on the table is a good start, it would provide even better environmental and economic benefits if adjusted to protect those eco hot spots.

Ultimately, the Commission stayed the course, voting 3-2 to maintain the compromise plan, or “Integrated Preferred Alternative,” as their proposed project.

The compromise plan draws from three stakeholder proposals that were developed over a year of study and negotiations among different interest groups. It would protect beloved ocean areas like Naples Reef, Dume underwater canyon, Laguna, and Swamis Reef while leaving the vast majority of the coast, including most of the region’s most popular fishing grounds, open for fishing. … “

Continue reading this article at IndyBay.org by clicking here.

March 10, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all)

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Environmentalist: It’s becoming a plastic world

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 10, 2010 at 5:59 am

From CNN:

“Every bit of fully synthetic plastic that’s ever been produced over the past 100 years is somewhere on our planet, a leading environmentalist, David de Rothschild, said Tuesday.

De Rothschild, who’s about to set sail on a boat made of recycled plastic to highlight pollution in the Pacific Ocean, told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour there has been a huge aggregation of small molecular-sized pieces of plastic in our atmosphere, in our oceans, or on our land since plastic was first produced in 1909. “We’re seeing them aggregating … and getting into the food chain, which is then transferring toxins back into us through the food we eat,” de Rothschild said.

“We have this sort of voracious appetite for throwaway, single-use plastics, what I call Dumb Planet 1.0 plastics — the plastic bag, the Styrofoam cup.” … “

Continue reading this article from CNN by clicking here.

March 10, 2010 · Filed Under Pacific Ocean Garbage Dump

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Dan Bacher commentary: North Coast enviros blast MLPA as evidence of corruption emerges

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 7, 2010 at 7:37 am

From Dan Bacher at IndyBay.org, this commentary:

“John and Barbara Stephens-Lewallen, Mendocino County’s leading environmental activist couple, demanded that the Schwarzenegger administration stop the corrupt, fast-track Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative during their testimony before the MLPA Blue Ribbon Task Force for the North Coast Study Region on March 1. Their plea to halt the process was made the same week that new hard evidence of corruption in the widely-contested MLPA fiasco emerged during a Fish and Game Commission meeting in Ontario, California.

“It is our duty to defend California ocean food sovereignty while we still draw breath,” the Stephens-Lewallens stated. “Public access to fisheries is a Constitutional right in California (Article 1, Section 25). We will lose this right unless we unite and assert it this year.”

“You and the interests you represent would be wise to help us stop the Marine Life Protection Act Initiative (MLPAI). The MLPAI is a lose/lose/lose effort on California’s North Coast, benefitting only the careerists who run the MLPAI process,” they said.

The Stephens-Lewallens criticize the MLPA process for being funded by a private corporation, the Resource Legacy Fund Foundation, effectively privatizing public trust ocean resources to pave the way for offshore oil drilling, wave energy projects and corporate aquaculture.

“The Resources Legacy Fund Foundation (Foundation) and its backers will never make sustainable and respected fisheries regulations here,” they said. “The Foundation will need to become more brutal and uglier in this futile effort.” … “

Continue reading this commentary by Dan Bacher by clicking here.

MORE MLPA COMMENTARY: The MLPA Initiative: A Corrupt Enron-Style Scam, commentary by David Gurney

March 7, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Faster method to detect bacterial contamination in coastal waters

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 4, 2010 at 6:48 am

From R&D:

“Currently, beachgoers are informed about water-quality conditions based on results from the previous day’s sample. Scientists must collect samples in the field, then return to a lab to culture them for analysis—a process that takes a minimum of 24 hours.

Now, engineers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have sped up the process of analyzing bacterial concentrations to under one hour, through the development of a new in-field, rapid-detection method.

Since bacteria levels can change quickly in the water column, a one-day turnaround time simply isn’t fast enough to adequately protect swimmers or prevent unnecessary beach closures, the engineers say.

This issue is especially pertinent in California, where gastrointestinal illness that can result from contact with contaminated beach waters has been estimated to cost Orange and Los Angeles county beach visitors between $21 million and $51 million per year in sick days and related issues. … “

Continue reading this article from R&D by clicking here.

March 4, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Chesbro bill seeks to fight spread of ocean garbage

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 3, 2010 at 6:44 am

From the Eureka Times-Standard:

“California 1st District Assemblyman Wesley Chesbro has introduced a bill seeking to require the fast food industry to reduce and recycle packaging waste.

The bill, Assembly Bill 2138, would create the “Plastic Ocean Pollution Reduction, Recycling and Composting Act,” which would require the fast food industry to only use packaging that is recyclable or compostable in the communities where it is used, according to a press release from Chesbro’s office.

”Plastic ocean pollution is a persistent and growing problem,” Chesbro said in the release. “Despite international treaties prohibiting dumping plastics at sea and other international, national, state and local action, trash in the ocean is increasing. Trash that washes into our waterways and bays poses a real and pressing threat to marine life. California must take on a leadership role in protecting our oceans.”

Chesbro, who chairs the Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee, recently held an investigative hearing on ocean pollution and the accumulation of toxic materials in California coastal waters. The testimony given at the hearing is the foundation of Chesbro’s bill. … “

March 3, 2010 · Filed Under Pacific Ocean Garbage Dump

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Calif. may ban power plants from using ocean as coolant; Spouting Off blog says yesterday’s LA Times story omitted a lot of important details

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 2, 2010 at 7:37 am

From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:

“State water board regulators are mulling a plan to stop power companies from vacuuming the ocean for water to cool their machinery.

Environmentalists said the practice destroys too much sea life, while utility advocates said the impact is minimal. Banning the practice would cost too much, jeopardize the reliability of the electricity grid and slow the state’s transition to clean energy, supporters of the practice said.

Screens prevent larger animals from entering the plants, but fish can die while trapped against these barriers. Anything smaller than the openings in the screens, including millions of tiny fish larvae, can enter the power plants and also die.

Federal rules ban new operations from drawing in seawater for so-called “once-through” cooling systems. State regulators now want to apply this rule to the 19 existing plants from Eureka to San Diego. … “

Continue reading this story from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.

Mark Gold of the Spouting Off blog has issues with yesterday’s Los Angeles Times coverage of this story:

” … reporter Jill Leovy missed the point. She omitted any discussion of the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act to use Best Available Control Technology to reduce larval entrainment and fish impingment in power plants. Federal courts all the way up to the Supreme Court have upheld the requirement, under section 316b of the act.

And once-through cooling (OTC) doesn’t fit anyone’s definition of Best Available Control Technology. Energy plants that use OTC literally suck the life out of the ocean, diverting millions of gallons of seawater via intake pipes to cool themselves. Somehow, the fact that every coastal power plant in California is in gross violation of the Clean Water Act didn’t get included in the article.

The Times piece didn’t include any information from the reporter’s interviews with the State Water Board or the energy agencies (California Energy Commission, Public Utilities Commission and the California Independent System of Operators) that support the draft policy.

If the Times did include this information, the reader would have seen that nearly all of the coastal power plants need to be repowered anyway because they use arcane, energy inefficient technologies. Also, the reader would have seen how California wants to move forward with the policy to self determine how OTC will get phased out rather than waiting for a one-size-fits-few approach from the federal EPA. … “

Continue reading this post from the Spouting Off blog by clicking here.

March 2, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Power plants criticize proposal to block use of seawater for cooling machinery

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 1, 2010 at 8:12 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

“Scuba diver John Vincent sensed something was wrong when, fishing for lobster one night off Playa del Rey, he felt a strange current.

It grew stronger. Seconds later, Vincent, 49, was swept into the mouth of a huge intake pipe for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s Scattergood power plant.

He tried to kick against the flow, but it was no use: Down the pipe he went, clutching his flashlight and his limit of lobsters, a long, fast journey through the dark. “I was flipping out,” he said. “My air supply was running out.”

Vincent’s misadventure was exceptional. Most of the organisms sucked into power plant intake pipes off the California coast are plankton and small fish.

But his story provides an unusual firsthand perspective on a process at the heart of a messy controversy coming to a head before the State Water Resources Control Board.

Every day, intake pipes such as the one that caught Vincent are permitted to suck in enough seawater to fill Lake Arrowhead, then spit it out again, a little warmer and a lot deader. The seawater is used for cooling mechanisms in power plants, and for decades, it has provided California’s electricity generators with a cheap and convenient way to keep the lights on. … “

Continue reading this article from the Los Angeles Times by clicking here.

March 1, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Dan Bacher: MLPA stakeholders draft resolution to address disregard for tribal rights

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on March 1, 2010 at 8:02 am

From Dan Bacher at IndyBay.org, this commentary:

“During a conference call/webinar on February 25, members of the North Coast Regional Stakeholders Group for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative agreed upon the proposed text for a recommendation to the MLPA Blue Ribbon Task Force on the topic of tribal uses of the ocean.

This is powerful, long needed language that addresses the disregard that MLPA officials and the state of California have demonstrated towards the traditional seaweed harvesting, fishing and ceremonial rights of California Indian Tribes since the process began in 2002 under the Davis administration. The initiative, after being put on hold because of lack of funding, was reinitiated with private funding by the Resource Legacy Fund Foundation under the Schwarzenegger administration in 2004.

That resolution states “That the MLPA Initiative shall appropriately acknowledge that California tribes and tribal communities have aboriginal rights to take marine resources and to use and manage coastal areas for traditional subsistence, cultural, religious, ceremonial, and other customary purposes.” … “

March 1, 2010 · Filed Under Northern California, Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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A sea of plastics

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 27, 2010 at 7:59 am

From U. S. News & World Report:

“Recent studies show that the oceans may hold more “garbage patches” of fine plastic flotsam than scientists realized and that the fragments extend well below the sea surface.

Most of these items are the size of fingernail clippings or smaller. They are the wave-shattered remnants of items such as rubbish, abandoned fishing gear and floats from fishing nets and scientific instruments. These plastic bits are especially common in a region of the Pacific Ocean southwest of California that is sometimes called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Recent cruises reveal that there’s more garbage in this patch than often meets the eye, oceanographer Giora Proskurowski of the Sea Education Association in Woods Hole, Mass., reported February 24 at the American Geophysical Union’s Ocean Sciences meeting.

Scientists often tow fine mesh nets behind their boats to conduct a census of floating debris, Proskurowski said. But if researchers tow their nets just at the surface, especially on windy days, they’re likely finding only a fraction of the debris that’s actually present. … “

Continue reading this article from U.S. News & World Report by clicking here.

February 27, 2010 · Filed Under Pacific Ocean Garbage Dump

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$4 million grant funds projects monitoring California marine protection areas

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 26, 2010 at 6:23 am

From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:

“The Ocean Protection Council awarded $4 million, almost half going to a UC Santa Cruz based consortium, to monitor North Central Coast marine protected areas.

The projects, which will continue for up to three years, will study the organisms inside and outside the protected areas to establish an integrated picture of marine ecosystems and human activities. The region being studied ranges from Alder Creek in Mendocino County to Pigeon Point in San Mateo County.

“I’m very excited about what the baseline project will deliver, it will be right on target with determining how these areas are performing,” said Cheri Recchia of the Ocean Protection Council.

The baseline program is a collaboration between California Sea Grant, Ocean Protection Council, Department of Fish and Game, Ocean Science Trust and Marine Protection Area Monitoring Enterprise. … “

Photo of Trinidad, California by flickr photographer Lee Coursey.

February 26, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Steven Maviglio: New studies show Marine Protected Areas benefit fish — and fishermen

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 23, 2010 at 6:34 am

From Steven Maviglio at IndyBay.org:

“Several new studies released yesterday in a special ocean-focused issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) have found that well-designed networks of marine reserves can provide both economic and environmental benefits.

Scientists at the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) conference, held this week in San Diego, highlighted marine reserve success stories from Los Angeles and Australia, showing that the protection of key habitat can rebuild fisheries and improve overall ocean health.

“There is plenty of new evidence to show that if reserves are designed well, they can benefit both fish and fishermen,” said Steven Gaines, Dean of the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at UC Santa Barbara in a press release on Science Daily http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100221200904.htm.

UC Santa Barbara’s Ben Halpern and Andrew Rassweiler emphasized the importance of location in a Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/56511/title/Placement_of_marine_reserves_is_key article. Marine reserves placed in the areas where fish and shellfish feed and breed can increase fishermen’s profits while decreasing their impacts on fish populations. … “

Continue reading Steven Maviglio’s commentary by clicking here.

February 23, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Dan Bacher: $4 million awarded to monitor North Central Coast MPAs

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 23, 2010 at 6:30 am

From Dan Bacher at IndyBay.org, this commentary:

“The Ocean Protection Council has awarded $4 million to “support initial monitoring” of the recently designated North Central Coast marine protected areas (MPAs) under Governor Arnold Schwarzengger’s widely-contested Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative.

“The projects, which will continue for up to three years, will target marine life and habitats, as well as commercial and recreational activities, inside and outside the protected areas,” according to a news release from Christina S. Johnson of California Sea Grant.

“Through the baseline program, teams of researchers and citizen-scientists will survey shallow and deep rocky habitats, kelp forests, rocky shores, estuaries, beaches and other key ecosystems,” the release stated. “They will also monitor ecologically and economically important species of fishes and invertebrates, as well as range of human activities, including commercial and sport fishing, and also “non-consumptive” recreation such as tide-pooling, bird watching and scuba diving.”

What parallel universe do Johnson and the teams of “researchers” and “citizen-scientists?” live in? Are they aware that this money is going to greenwash one of the most corrupt environmental fiascos in California history, a process that is the antithesis of real marine and fishery protection?

Are they aware that so-called “public” process is funded and directed by the Resource Legacy Fund Foundation, a shadowy organization funded by big corporations that attempts to control environmental politics in California and is entirely unaccountable to the public? … “

Continue reading Dan Bacher’s commentary at IndyBay.org by clicking here.

February 23, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Trash floats eco-warrior’s boat: David de Rothschild plans to sail the Plastiki, his catamaran made of soda bottles, to the giant floating garbage patch in the Pacific to publicize environmental woes

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 21, 2010 at 7:11 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

“Reporting from Sausalito, Calif. – David de Rothschild is talking trash, lots and lots of trash.

“There were 25 billion Styrofoam cups used last year. How do you even get your head around what 25 billion Styrofoam cups looks like?” he said. “Eighty-odd percent of what’s purchased by Americans is thrown out within six months.”

On this day, though, the British banking heir is focused on some very particular refuse as he skims along the San Francisco Bay in a catamaran called Plastiki: The 12,000 or so recycled soda bottles lashed together to build his clunky vessel, and the growing heap of plastic fragments called the Eastern Garbage Patch floating in the Pacific.

If all goes well — so far, it’s been a little hit and miss — De Rothschild hopes to set sail aboard Plastiki in March, tour the garbage patch and end up in Australia, while blogging about the evils of plastic and a consumer society.

He also wants to highlight Plastiki’s innovations, like the glue made of cashew hulls and sugar, which he said “could go to market today and take epoxies — horrible, noxious stuff — off the shelf straightaway.” … “

February 21, 2010 · Filed Under Pacific Ocean Garbage Dump

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NRDC Switchboard: Experts at annual science convention to review studies showing Marine Protected Areas restore ocean ecosystems

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 19, 2010 at 7:45 am

From Leila Monroe from the NRDC Switchboard blog:

“This week, marine science, policy and real-world conservation all converge in sunny San Diego. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is holding their annual meeting and the science behind marine protected areas will be an important topic of discussion. San Diego is also part of the southern California region of marine protected areas that is currently being designed with the extensive input of citizens and scientists, under the Marine Life Protection Act.

I am happy to be attending the AAAS meeting, not just to hear from preeminent scientists about the latest studies demonstrating the effectiveness of marine protected areas, but also to moderate a panel on marine spatial planning, and to get in touch with the resource that I love dearly, enjoying some early morning surf sessions in warmer southern California waters. … “

Continue reading this post at the NRDC Switchboard blog by clicking here.

February 19, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Oceans’ acidity rate is soaring, claims study; The oceans are likely to become so acidic in coming centuries that they will become uninhabitable for vast swathes of life

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 17, 2010 at 6:39 am

From AlterNet:

“The rate at which the oceans are becoming more acidic is greater today than at any time in tens of millions of years, according to a new study.

Rapidly rising concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere mean that the rate of ocean acidification is the fastest since the age of the dinosaurs, which became extinct 65m years ago, scientists believe.

The oceans are likely to become so acidic in coming centuries that they will become uninhabitable for vast swathes of life, especially the little-studied organisms on the deep-sea floor which are a vital link in the marine food chain. … “

February 17, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Oceano Dunes ecosystem needs constant care With so many uses, the Dunes requires exhaustive monitoring to ensure ecological concerns such as air and water quality, trash and wildlife are managed well

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 17, 2010 at 6:17 am

From the San Luis Obispo Tribune:

“Take 4,000 acres of wind-swept dunes, five-and-a-half miles of beach and numerous rare plants and animals and combine that with 2 million people and tens of thousands of trucks and off-highway vehicles a year.

It’s a potent recipe for controversy. No other location in San Luis Obispo County and perhaps no other California state park consistently generates as many environmental conflicts as Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. The controversies cover a wide range beyond protecting wildlife — everything from air pollution to littering.

In fact, environmental issues have been one of the most potent tools critics have used to impose restrictions on off-highway-vehicle riding in the park. For example, a lawsuit by the Sierra Club recently forced the park to nearly double a seasonal shorebird closure area in the park.

Environmental issues are the main point OHV opponents cite in arguing that the county should retain ownership of a large parcel in the center of the park. They want the parcel to act as a buffer between riding areas and ecologically sensitive areas in the park. … “

February 17, 2010 · Filed Under Central Coast, Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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The Pacific Ocean’s Garbage Patch needs more study

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 16, 2010 at 7:55 am

From Nina Shen Rastogi of the Washington Post’s Green Lantern:

“I keep reading about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, that floating island of trash between California and Hawaii. Can we ever clean it up? And should we even bother?

The Lantern always thought the Garbage Patch was a huge, waterborne landfill — sort of like a massive hair clog in a big drain. In reality, it’s not so much an island of trash as a thin, soupy area of litter, mostly in the form of tiny flecks of plastic, studded here and there with old fishing gear and children’s toys. Even if you were to sail right through the Patch, the water probably wouldn’t look too remarkable, unless you scooped some up and looked at it closely. So cleaning this part of the ocean isn’t as simple as you might imagine.

Because the trash is so dispersed, it’s not like we can just steer a big ship out to sea and pick up the Garbage Patch. Collecting all those small fragments of plastic would be extremely expensive. Plus, thanks to a variety of factors — from winter storms to El Niño — the Garbage Patch moves, making it hard to target effectively. Finally, in gathering up those little scraps, you also run the risk of catching — and killing — any marine animals living amid the debris, many of which are the same size as the plastic bits. … “

February 16, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Aquaculture made safe: A House bill aims to set standards to ensure that ocean fish farming is environmentally friendly, says commentary

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 15, 2010 at 6:37 am

From the Los Angeles Times, this commentary by Rosamond L. Naylor, director of the program on food security and the environment at Stanford University, and George H. Leonard, director of the aquaculture program at the Ocean Conservancy in Santa Cruz:

“While Americans’ appetite for seafood continues to grow, most of us know little about where our fish comes from or how it was produced. In California, more than half of our seafood comes from aquaculture, often imported from fish farms in other countries. Just as most chickens, pigs and cows are raised in tightly confined, intensive operations, so too are many farm-raised fish.

But raising fish in tight quarters carries some serious risks. Disease and parasites can be transmitted from farmed to wild fish. Effluents, antibiotics and other chemicals can be discharged into surrounding waters. Nonnative farmed fish can escape into wild fish habitat. And a reliance on wild-caught fish in aquaculture feed can deplete food supplies for other marine life.

These environmental impacts have been evident in many other countries with intensive marine fish farming. In Chile, where industry expansion was prioritized over environmental protection, salmon aquaculture has collapsed, causing a major blow to what had been one of Chile’s leading exports. Tens of thousands of people are now jobless in southern Chile, where the salmon farming industry once boomed.

If aquaculture is to play a responsible role in the future of seafood here at home, we must ensure that the “blue revolution” in ocean fish farming does not cause harm to the oceans and the marine life they support. … “

February 15, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all)

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Debate emerges on how to fight coastal erosion

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 9, 2010 at 8:05 am

From KGO-TV:

“SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — ABC7 has been covering the race to save apartment buildings in danger of sliding into the ocean in Pacifica. It is a dramatic story that is likely to become a lot more common in the next few years. Climate change and rising sea levels are eating away at the California coastline. The big question is, how far should we go to stop nature from taking its course?

What would you pay for an ocean front home along some of Sonoma County’s most beautiful and rugged coastline?

The house is on the market for $550,000 – a bargain in many Bay Area communities. The problem is, the neighborhood is quite literally “on the decline.”

There used to be 21 houses at the top of the 70-foot cliff, but in the last six years eight were torn down or moved because the hillside is collapsing. … “

Continue reading at the KGO website by clicking here.

February 9, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all), Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Junk accumulating on Monterey Bay ocean floor: Scientists find increasing levels of debris in the deep sea

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 9, 2010 at 6:21 am

From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:

“Deep below the pale blue shimmering surface of Monterey Bay, lies a ton of trash. “We have even seen artillery shells – large artillery shells, spools of cable and a little unbroken teapot just sitting on the sand,” said Diana Watters of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Southwest Fisheries Center.

Watters and her co-workers have been recording the amounts of debris lying on the ocean floor since 1993.

More typically the researchers have seen discarded or lost recreational and commercial fishing gear or simply bottles and cans. The most common item in the debris is monofilament fishing line, the line used in rod-and-reel fishing rods. “The fishing line most likely gets caught on rocks and gets broken off accidently,” Watters said. … “

February 9, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Mix-up to begin for MLPA proposals

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 7, 2010 at 7:37 am

From the Eureka Times-Standard:

“A number of proposals to create marine reserves off the North Coast have gone into the blender, as a 31-member group formed under the state Marine Life Protection Act Initiative meets for the first time on Monday.

A group of local stakeholders and conservationists say their proposals are meant to soften the economic and social blow anticipated with the shutting down or restricting fishing and gathering in some areas along the sparsely populated coast. But while several proposals are roughly similar, few of them appear to meet the guidelines set up by the 1999 act.

That means that whatever comes out of the mix over the next year is likely to be more restrictive than what local interests have proposed. The initiative’s staff are currently reviewing the submissions, which are expected to be made public on Feb. 16.

Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District Conservation Director Adam Wagschal said that each type of reserve proposed in various coastal habitats is added up to meet the state’s requirements. Wagschal coordinated the proposal submitted by the North Coast Local Interest MPA Working Group — composed of local agencies, commercial and sport fishing and other stakeholders from Humboldt, Del Norte and Mendocino counties.

”Everything contributes a certain amount toward meeting the guidelines,” Wagschal said. … “

February 7, 2010 · Filed Under Northern California, Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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$20 million could be spent to save Broad Beach

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 5, 2010 at 6:45 am

From the Malibu Times:

“The first phase of a long-term solution to the ongoing erosion of Broad Beach began last week with the emergency construction of an eight-foot-tall, 4,100-foot-long rock wall designed to shield beachfront homes and their septic tanks from being undermined by high tides and stormy surf.

Paid for entirely by homeowners, the $3.4 million rock wall, expected to reach completion in six weeks, is part of a $15 million to $20 million plan to permanently restore Broad Beach to its 100-foot width within the next six years, according to members of the Trancas Property Owners Association. … “

February 5, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all), Other Oceans & Beaches Stories, Southern California

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PG&E wave project sets out into unfamiliar waters

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 3, 2010 at 8:28 am

From the Eureka Times-Standard:

“The Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is weeks away from submitting an application to the federal government for a first-of-its kind project to test wave energy devices off the Humboldt County coast.

The pilot project could be a proving ground for the large-scale production of energy from waves, but a host of environmental and economic concerns will have to be addressed before that can happen. At a public meeting at the Veteran’s Hall Tuesday night, a working group made up of representatives from PG&E, state and federal agencies, commercial and sport fishing interests, and surfing and environmental groups outlined the promise and potential effects of new technologies.

PG&E expects to submit a pilot project license application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by Feb. 26. It will ask to test three to four different types of wave power generators in an area 1/2-mile wide and 2 miles long about 3 miles to sea roughly west of Arcata. The intense wave activity off the Humboldt coast, and the chosen area’s proximity to a working harbor like Humboldt Bay, make it an ideal test site, said PG&E Senior Program Manager Bill Toman.

”It turns out, as anyone who’s been to the shore here knows, we’ve got a lot of good waves,” Toman said. … “

February 3, 2010 · Filed Under Northern California, Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Popular Long Beach swimming spot is poised for restoration

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 1, 2010 at 6:24 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

“Eleven storm drains empty into Colorado Lagoon in Long Beach, and its only outlet to the sea — a 900-foot underground culvert — is choked with mussels, clams, sand and barnacles.

So it’s no surprise that one of Southern California’s only lagoons — shallow saltwater bodies sheltered from the ocean — is among the dirtiest around. Last year, Colorado Lagoon was ranked as the state’s fourth most-polluted beach in Heal the Bay’s “Beach Bummers” list.

Yet the Y-shaped basin is one of the most popular swimming spots in the city, packed with sunbathers and swimmers on hot summer afternoons.

Conservationists have been working for more than a decade to restore the 18-acre lagoon, often removing as much as 100 pounds of trash at weekly cleanups. But only now are their aspirations starting to take shape in a big way. … “

February 1, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories, Southern California

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Study shows first direct evidence of ocean acidification

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 21, 2010 at 8:05 am

From YubaNet.com:

“TAMPA, Fla. Jan. 20, 2010 – Seawater in a vast and deep section of the northeastern Pacific Ocean shows signs of increased acidity brought on by manmade carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — a phenomenon that carries with it far-reaching ecological effects — reports a team of researchers led by a University of South Florida College of Marine Science chemist.

The scientists, whose results are published in the American Geophysical Union’s journal Geophysical Research Letters, analyzed Pacific seawater between Oahu, Hawaii, and Kodiak, Alaska by comparing pH readings from 1991 and from 2006. This study provides the first direct measurements of basin-wide pH changes in the ocean’s depths and at its surface and has produced the first direct evidence of acidification across an entire ocean basin, the investigators said.

Principal investigator Robert Byrne, a USF seawater physical chemistry professor, said the study leaves no doubt that growing CO2 levels in the atmosphere are exerting major impacts on the world’s oceans.

“If this happens in a piece of ocean as big as a whole ocean basin, then this is a global phenomenon,” Byrne said. … “

January 21, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all)

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Saving ocean ecosystems: Vanishing acts are becoming common for marine creatures like Pacific leatherback sea turtles

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 20, 2010 at 6:12 am

From the San Francisco Bay Guardian:

“In the spring and summer months, pacific leatherback sea turtles arrive just outside the Golden Gate to feast on jellyfish. The turtles, which can weigh up to 1,200 pounds and live as long as a century, are some of the oldest reptiles in existence.

In a single year, a leatherback may swim 6,200 miles as it encircles the Pacific Ocean, migrating from nesting grounds as far away as Indonesia to feed off the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington. The leatherback was listed as a federally endangered species in 1970, and scientists now worry that the turtles could go extinct in as little as 10 years.

The ancient reptile may be rare, but its vanishing act is becoming common for marine creatures. Jackie Dragon, a campaign organizer with Pacific Environment, told us large fish populations, including bluefin tuna, Atlantic cod, marlin, and certain sharks, have declined by 90 percent since the advent of industrialized fishing in the 1950s. Meanwhile, ocean acidification due to rising carbon dioxide levels has imperiled key species, threatening to alter the food web with potentially drastic implications. … “

January 20, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all)

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New rules planned for fish farming in federal waters

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 19, 2010 at 2:16 pm

From the Ventura County Star:

“WASHINGTON — Americans’ insatiable love of seafood is back on the federal government’s plate.

Five years after former President George W. Bush’s administration first proposed allowing fish farming in federal waters, the Obama administration is set to come up with its own set of rules for offshore aquaculture, including deepwater fish farming.

The new rules, which are expected to spell out a permitting process for offshore aquaculture operations, could come as early as this summer, said Michael Rubino, manager of the aquaculture program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“We’re looking at this whole question of aquaculture in federal waters — how to go about it,” Rubino said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, has filed legislation that would establish a regulatory framework for aquaculture operations in federal waters, which begin three miles beyond the nation’s shores. … “

January 19, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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MLPA initiative: Genocidal attack on North Coast tribal culture and sovereignty, says commentary

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 11, 2010 at 6:24 am

From John Lewallen of the Pacific Ocean Access Network, this commentary:

“The Marine Life Protection Act Initiative (MLPAI) is a genocidal attack on the tribal nations and native cultures who are surrounded, and sometimes overwhelmed by, the State of California.

Here in Mendocino County, California, are eight sovereign tribal nations. Many more federally-recognized tribal nations live in Sonoma, Humboldt and Del Norte counties. Their cultural survival is dependent on being part of the intertidal and ocean ecosystem in an annual migration to the coast to camp, talk to the spirits, play, and harvest essential food for human and cultural health.

“Cultural Genocide” is a crime under international law, and a morally reprehensible act when done with full knowledge. I am sure the genocidal MLPAI will stop as soon as most Californians see its true nature. … “

January 11, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Northwest orcas rebound, but still endangered; Six births bump up the population of killer whales off Washington and southwest British Columbia

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 10, 2010 at 7:52 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

“Seattle – A little over a year after researchers feared a drop in the Northwest’s endangered killer-whale population meant disaster, the number of orcas has bounced back with six new babies and no whales lost.

Though scientific evidence is skimpy, some whale experts say the good news might be the result of enough salmon for the black-and-white mammals to eat. Others say so little is known about orcas that the baby boom could be a result of any number of factors — or simply a statistical fluke.

Whatever the reason, they’re overjoyed about the new arrivals.

“We’re all very happy to see so many births,” said Susan Berta of the Whidbey Island-based Orca Network. “We’re all hoping that they find lots of fish to keep them healthy and keep the mothers in good condition so they can feed the calves,” she said. … “

Picture of orca by flickr photographer Sparky Leigh (Creative Commons).

January 10, 2010 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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New rules could protect Central Coast sea turtles

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 6, 2010 at 8:34 am

From the Contra Costa Times:

“SANTA CRUZ – New rules proposed to protect endangered leatherback turtles off the West Coast could have far-reaching effects on Monterey Bay clean energy, desalination and other projects as federal officials seek a balance between increased human demands on the sea and resources that the rare creatures need to survive.

The proposed rules released Tuesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration set aside 70,000 watery acres as critical habitat for leatherback sea turtles. The boundary in California stretches from Mendocino County’s Point Arena to Point Vicente in Los Angeles County. Farther north, the boundary reaches from Cape Flattery in Washington to the Umpqua River in Oregon.

The new rules do not govern fishermen, who already must follow regulations issued by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service to make sure turtles are not accidentally caught in gill nets and through other fishing techniques.

Specific details governing various projects were not included in Tuesday’s proposed rules. Instead, by designating the areas as critical habitat, those wanting to drill for oil or natural gas, build desalination plants, harvest wave energy, build windmills or operate fish farms within must first consider how those projects might harm sea turtles and find ways to offset them, according to the proposal. … “

ADDITIONAL COVERAGE:

January 6, 2010 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all)

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San Clemente declares opposition to toll road through city

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 6, 2010 at 8:23 am

From the O. C. Register:

“San Clemente to Commerce Department: No ramming a toll road into our town, OK?

The City Council, on a 5-0 vote Tuesday night, declared its opposition to any plan that might make San Clemente the end point for an extension of the Foothill (241) Toll Road.

Why the fuss: A year ago, when the U.S. Commerce Department rejected the Transportation Corridor Agencies’ appeal to allow the 241 to extend to San Onofre near Trestles Beach, the federal government cited what it called a viable alternative – run the road into San Clemente. … “

Note to readers: The San Onofre toll road controversy was covered by Aquafornia because the proposed alignment would have run close to the beach, so it was covered on Aquafornia under oceans & beaches news. The OCTCA has said recently that it was still evaluating options and was not ruling out another attempt to place the toll road through San Onofre State Beach. And so the story continues. Aquafornia will continue to cover the toll road in the regional news section.

January 6, 2010 · Filed Under San Onofre Toll Road

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Ocean aquaculture legislation unnecessary and a concern for coastal and fishing communities and environment

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 29, 2009 at 7:37 am

From Food and Water Watch:

““On Christmas Eve, a bill introduced by Representative Lois Capps (CA-23) to allow offshore aquaculture in federal U.S. waters became available to the public. Also known as ocean fish farming, this practice is the mass-production of fish using open net pens or cages located about three to 200 miles offshore (in most ocean areas). This bill is unnecessary and not a step toward protecting our oceans and fishermen’s jobs from harms associated with ocean fish farming.

“While Representative Capps may intend legislation as a safeguard against a piecemeal approach to developing and regulating ocean aquaculture, the ultimate effect is of streamlining the process for the industry to better establish itself in the U.S.

“Ocean fish farming can have devastating effects on the environment and fishing jobs and produce lower-quality fish for consumers. Environmental problems can include escapement of fish, pollution of surrounding waters with excess feed and fish waste, and transmission of parasites and diseases to wild populations. These problems will not be fully mitigated by the bill, which enforces very limited liability for damages to natural resources.

“Economically, fish farms can undercut the prices that local fishermen receive for their catch, further threatening an already vulnerable job market. This industry is not a solution to the question of how to meet the growing demand for seafood. … “

December 29, 2009 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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To save the planet, save the seas, says commentary

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 28, 2009 at 7:25 am

From the New York Times, this commentary by Dan Laffoley, the marine vice chairman of the World Commission on Protected Areas at the International Union for Conservation of Nature:

“For the many disappointments of the recent climate talks in Copenhagen, there was at least one clear positive outcome, and that was the progress made on a program called Reducing Emissions From Deforestation and Forest Degradation. Under this program, key elements of which were agreed on at Copenhagen, developing countries would be compensated for preserving forests, peat soils, swamps and fields that are efficient absorbers of carbon dioxide, the primary heat-trapping gas linked to global warming.

This approach, which takes advantage of the power of nature itself, is an economical way to store large amounts of carbon. But the program is limited in that it includes only those carbon sinks found on land. We now need to look for similar opportunities to curb climate change in the oceans.

Few people may realize it, but in addition to producing most of the oxygen we breathe, the ocean absorbs some 25 percent of current annual carbon dioxide emissions. Half the world’s carbon stocks are held in plankton, mangroves, salt marshes and other marine life. So it is at least as important to preserve this ocean life as it is to preserve forests, to secure its role in helping us adapt to and mitigate climate change. … “

December 28, 2009 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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Dan Bacher commentary: Prominent biologist challenges MLPA science panel assumptions and data

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 24, 2009 at 7:24 am

From Dan Bacher at IndyBay.org, this commentary:

“Patrick Higgins, Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District Commissioner and a well respected fishery biologist, is questioning the assumptions and poor data that the “science” behind Governor Arnold Schwarzengger’s fast-track Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) process is based on.

In a December 20 letter to a biologist on the MLPA Science Advisory Team, Higgins challenged the spacing guidelines and fundamental assumptions regarding the larval drift model, a model in which ocean groundfish populations are supposedly replenished by the larval fish that drift outside of marine reserves by means of ocean currents.

“The lengthy theoretical discussion of larval drift at your Eureka December 17 SAT meeting had absolutely no foundation,” said Higgins. “As pointed out by one of the SAT members, the currents of the North Coast are strong and unique and the linear distance model has no basis here.”

He also says that Marine Protected Area (MPA) size guidelines used previously in the MLPA process are “not appropriate” for the North Coast.

“We in the North Coast region prefer fewer large MPAs and believe they are more likely to achieve the conservation objectives of the MLPA,” said Higgins. “Small preserves would not succeed in protecting fish populations because of migration of adults out of the MPA and fishing edge effects.” … “

December 24, 2009 · Filed Under Other Oceans & Beaches Stories

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