Great article T-Rex...
I know that area well, my aunt and uncle live in Philo, no doubt know the Lewallens. I go ab diving up there when I visit. Beautiful and bountiful area, abs galore along with the urchin. One thing you have to undestand about that area...tough launches, and a hike to get to the shore. Definitely not an easy access place, and I know for a fact there is not a lot of pressure on that area. The beaches are desolate since the population is low. So, why the closures? What is the real reason?
Not the future of the abs - 3 daily in season, 24 max yearly.
Kelp? Everywhere...
Urchins - Everywhere
Incredible article...
Some great points...
In a recent article in Terrain, published out of the Ecology Center in Berkeley, Elly Hopper quotes Kaitilin Gaffney, Central Coast program manager for the Ocean Conservancy as stating, "I would say the MLPA is clearly the most participatory and inclusive process that I've ever participated in."
"Yet some local stakeholders who use the ocean as a subsistence food source and were not selected for a decision- making position feel steamrolled," Hopper continued. "Jim Martin, the West Coast Regional Director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, who has been involved with various MLPA plans for ten years, feels that the process wasn't as inclusive as it's been made out to be: 'That is complete BS. It's open in the sense that there are a lot of meetings to go to and a lot of things to read and speakers to listen to. But when it comes to public comment, you get one minute.'" (http://ecologycenter.org/terrain/issues/summer-2009/sea-combers)
The MLPA, passed by the Legislature in 1999, under Arnold Schwarzenegger has expanded from a $250,000 process as originally authorized to a $35,000,000 boondoggle that threatens thousands of North coast jobs and dozens of communities. Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez (D-Shafter) in March called for a hearing investigating conflict of interest in the MLPA process, while the Central Coast Fisheries Conservation Coalition (CCFCC) has filed a complaint with the Fair Political Practices Commission over conflict of interest in Fish and Game Commissioner Michael Sutton's votes on the Fish and Game Commission.
Sutton was previously employed by the Packard Foundation, which funds the Resources Legacy Fund Foundation, the organization that is funding the MLPA Process. He currently works for Julie Packard's Monterey Bay Aquarium. The CCFCCl is charging Sutton with conflict of interest in making decisions regarding the MLPA that could benefit his employer. (For more information, read this excellent article in the Sacramento News and Review, by Allistair Bland, http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/content?oid=1009887).
Someone please explain to me how 'extensive public input' can be conveyed in ONE MINUTE!
SAN DIEGANS - WAKE UP!
Obviously, the same thing is happening to us, that's why we have so many people stepping up to the plate...
Fair Political Practices Commission...hmmm....
