CalOceans News

Protecting California's north coast

One of the coolest things about California's ocean protection planning, through the Marine Life Protection Act, has been the public involvement.  Our state's new underwater parks are being mapped out by local residents, one section of the coast at a time. With so many people relying on the ocean for work and play, there are a lot of different viewpoints. But everyone shares a commitment to improving ocean health, and nowhere has this been more apparent than on the north coast, where community stakeholders came together to propose a single unified plan supported by government officials, fishing groups, and conservationists.

The north coast unified proposal would protect iconic places like Ten-Mile Beach, south Cape Mendocino, and Pyramid Point while leaving all north coast harbors open, and allowing ongoing traditional tribal harvest. It is a balanced solution that considers the circumstances unique to that region. 

The unified plan won approval from the Governor's MLPA Blue Ribbon Task Force, and is currently under consideration by the California Fish and Game Commission.

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Broad support for north coast's unified MPA plan

After months of careful study and negotiations, north coast stakeholders from a variety of industries and background met on the middle in their final round of marine protected area planning.  The group was the first in Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) history to develop a unified proposal for their region.  The map they agreed on will protect key places like Reading Rock, south Humboldt Bay, and Ten Mile Beach in Mendocino, while minimizing short-term impacts to local harbors and allowing ongoing tribal harvest.

The stakeholders are proud of their plan, which balances the needs of local people and wildlife, weighing both economic and environmental considerations to find the sweet spot.  Six of them signed on to an opinion editorial in the Eureka Times-Standard urging the state to respect their plan.  The signers, who include Aaron Newman of Humboldt
Fishermen's Marketing Association, Tim Klassen of Reel Steel
Sportsfishing, Greg Dale of Coast Seafoods; recreational diver Brandi Easter, Jennifer Savage, of Ocean Conservancy, and Pete Nichols of Humboldt
Baykeeper, represent both fishing and conservation interests, who have come together to make the MLPA work for their communities.

The plan was endorsed by Recreational Fishing Alliance, whose West Coast Regional Director Jim Martin said, "We urge all recreational fishing associations, clubs and organizations
to join us in support of the "Unified MPA Array" by endorsing this
resolution and sending it to the Blue Ribbon Task Force."

You can see the unified proposal and submit comments online at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/mpaproposals_nc.asp.

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