CalOceans News

Positive tone continues on the north coast

As the unified proposal for a network of marine protected areas in the north coast continues to move forward, the State of California is scrambling to find a way to honor traditional tribal uses without sacrificing much-needed protections for northern coastal waters. Humboldt County’s North County Journal published an article last week on the search for a solution, a process in which tribal leaders, state officials and conservationists expressing a shared desire to balance the needs of conservation with the cultural traditions of native tribes.

The search for a solution has a positive and collaborative tone, and we at CalOceans hope to see it brought to a successful conclusion. And it’s encouraging to recall that we’ve seen issues of tribal rights successfully and fairly negotiated in the south, central and north-central regions. Following a directive from California Resources Secretary John Laird, the Fish and Game  will work with tribal parties to ensure both the Marine Life Protection Act and tribal traditions are respected.  From the article:

“We’ve had a couple meetings with Secretary Laird and his assistant. They expressed a will to work with us to come up with a solution that we can all live with... I believe that we all have the same goal in common, and that is to manage and protect our resources in as safe a way as possible, and that can only be done through a joint effort.” - Yurok Tribal Chair Thomas O’Rourke Sr.

Jennifer Savage with the Ocean Conservancy agrees. “Both the local community and the Blue Ribbon Task Force have been steadfast in supporting traditional, non-commercial tribal uses within Marine Protected Areas.”

The North Coast Regional Stakeholder Group made up of fishermen, conservationists, scientists, recreational ocean user and local businesses created the unified proposal last year to meet the ecological requirements of the MLPA while minimizing socioeconomic impacts. The plan, which enjoys broad support from north coast residents and elected officials, has been approved by the Blue Ribbon Task Force and is currently under review by the Fish and Game Commission.

• Tags:
• north coast
• Marine Life Protection Act
• mlpa
• north coast study region
• unified proposal
• tribal issues