http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/pdfs/scmpas121510.pdf
Who:    California Fish and Game Commission

What:   News release (see below) regarding the adopted marine protected area regulations for the

            MLPA South Coast Study Region (Point Conception in Santa Barbara County to the

            California-Mexico border in San Diego County) and certified final environmental impact

            report (EIR, prepared under the California Environmental Quality Act or CEQA) for proposed

            south coast marine protected areas

When:   Regulations are expected to go into effect in 2011; the final EIR is available now

Where:  A message will be sent to this list when the south coast marine protected area regulations have

            been approved by the Office of Administrative Law; the final EIR is available at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/finalimpact_sc.asp

California Department of Fish and Game News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - December 15, 2010

Contacts:

Adrianna Shea, Fish and Game Commission, (916) 508-5262

Jordan Traverso, DFG Communications, (916) 654-9937

California Fish and Game Commission Gives Final Approval for South Coast Marine Protected Areas

The California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) has adopted regulations to create a new suite of marine protected areas (MPAs) in Southern California. At a Commission meeting in Santa Barbara today, the regulations were adopted as part of the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which requires California to reexamine and redesign its system of MPAs with the goals to, among other things, increase the effectiveness of MPAs in protecting the states marine life and habitats, marine ecosystems and marine natural heritage.

Informed by recommendations generated through a two-year public planning process, the regulations will create 36 new MPAs encompassing approximately 187 square miles (8 percent) of state waters in the study region. Approximately 116 square miles (4.9 percent) have been designated as no-take state marine reserves (82.5 square miles/3.5 percent) and no-take state marine conservation areas (33.5 square miles/1.4 percent), with the remainder designated as state marine conservation areas with different take allowances and varying levels of protection. In addition to approving the MPA regulations, the Commission also certified the environmental impact report prepared pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act.

The public planning process for the south coast region, from Point Conception in Santa Barbara County to the California border with Mexico, began in July 2008 and included more than 50 days of meetings with formal public comment held for a 64-member Regional Stakeholder Group, a Science Advisory Team and a Blue Ribbon Task Force appointed by the Secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency. In addition, more than 12,000 written public comments were submitted through the regulatory and environmental review processes to help inform recommendations on south coast region MPAs.

The California Department of Fish and Game, the lead agency charged with managing the states marine resources, will be responsible for implementing the MLPA program which will include enforcement, education, monitoring and research activities. The south coast MPA regulations are anticipated to go into effect in mid-2011 after appropriate filings with the Office of Administrative Law and the Secretary of State.

The south coast study region is the third of five study regions to complete the planning process under the MLPA. Once implemented, the south coast MPAs will join the MPAs currently in place from the central and north-central coast study regions to form a network ranging approximately 875 miles from the California border with Mexico to Alder Creek near Point Arena in Mendocino County. The Commission will receive recommendations for the north coast study region from the north coast blue ribbon task force in February which will mark the start of the formal regulatory process. Planning is under way to develop the process for San Francisco Bay, the fifth and final study region.

The existing MPAs in the northern Channel Islands, which encompass an additional 168 square miles and 7 percent of state waters in the study region, were not modified as part of this decision.

A map of the decisions made today can be viewed at www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/pdfs/scmpas121510.pdf.

Critical Vote Dec 15-16

Process to Close Sportfishing in California Nearing Critical Final Vote
Send in your comments to the Fish and Game Commission prior to the December 15-16 meeting asking for the suspension of the South Coast implementation process

The Situation

During its upcoming meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission could vote to enclose approximately 15 percent of southern California’s coastal waters within marine protected areas (MPAs), including many of the most popular fishing spots, under the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) process. This critical vote comes at a time when concerns about the MLPA process continue to escalate. A recent court ruling validates long-held concerns about the secretive ways in which the groups implementing the MLPA have been making decisions. The meeting is being held December 15-16, in Santa Barbara.

The MLPA process has been plagued by numerous issues which have not been resolved, including:

• The lack of a transparent and open decision making process
• Inadequate resources for enforcement and biological monitoring
• A process that side-steps a science-based fisheries management approach that clearly identifies the threats to California’s marine environment

Touted as “ecosystem protection,” the MLPA only targets recreational fishing and its significant economic contributions to California’s economy all the while ignoring the litany of significant threats to California’s oceans, such as sewage outfalls and storm water runoff, agricultural chemicals and other pollutants, ocean acidification, ocean side development and once-through cooling.

The Department of Fish and Game estimates that the MPA regulations will cost California’s taxpayers $40 million annually for enforcement and biological monitoring – resources that the state simply does not have. With a current deficit of $26 billion, California cannot afford to adopt costly measures that will only work to limit recreational fishing access which provides employment for 20,000 Californians.

How You Can Help

Given the numerous serious concerns surrounding the process, please send a message to the California Fish and Game Commission urging them to suspend the South Coast MLPA implementation.

Visit www.KeepAmericaFishing.org for more information on the MLPA.

Thank you for doing your part to help KeepAmericaFishing!

3 New Meeting dates for the MLPA workshop.

Save the Date: Attend Round 2 Public Workshop Informing Development of the
South Coast Marine Protected Areas Monitoring Plan

**To receive general updates and other information, please sign up for the Monitoring Enterprise listserv at monitoringenterprise.org.

The MPA Monitoring Enterprise, in cooperation with the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG), invites you to attend the second round of public workshops to inform the development of the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Monitoring Plan for the South Coast region (Point Conception to the California/Mexico border).

The first round of public workshops, held in July 2010, described the monitoring framework and the anticipated process and timeline for developing the plan, and gathered public input on South Coast MPA monitoring perspectives and priorities. An overview of those workshops is available on the Monitoring Enterprise website: www.calost.org/South_Coast.html.

At the second round of workshops, Monitoring Enterprise staff will:

• Present and answer questions on: 1) draft monitoring metrics for assessing ecosystem conditions and trends, and 2) draft questions to evaluate MPA design and management decisions; and
• Invite written comment on the draft metrics and questions, at and/or following the workshops.

The workshops will take place in three locations in the South Coast region (all times are approximately 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM). All workshops will have the same format and agenda. The Monitoring Enterprise will post the agenda, venue information, and other advance meeting materials on the Monitoring Enterprise website at least one week prior to the workshops:

• Monday, November 8: Santa Barbara
• Wednesday, November 10: Culver City
• Monday, November 15: Carlsbad

If you are interested in attending, please RSVP by Friday, October 29 to Christine Lim (clim@kearnswest.com or 415-391-7900) with the date/location you will attend. Lunch will be provided for those who RSVP by October 29.

Please feel free to forward this email to other members of the public who would be interested in attending. Please contact Christine Lim (see email address above) with any questions. For more information about the MPA Monitoring Enterprise, please visit http://calost.org/monitoring_ent.html. 

MLPA Meeting Southern Sept. 29th

Please see attached for a draft agenda for the commission’s September 29, 2010 meeting.  Subject of the meeting is consideration of possible extension of public review and comment period for the draft environmental impact report regarding MPAs in the MLPA South Coast Study Region.

AND GAME COMMISSION
(916) 653-4899
www.fgc.ca.gov
Special Meeting of Lion’s Gate Hotel & Conference Center
September 29, 2010 (Wednesday) Club Ballroom1
12:00 p.m. 3410 Westover Street
McClellan, CA.

AGENDA

ALL MEETINGS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
1. DISCUSSION AND CONSIDERATION OF POSSIBLE EXTENSION OF PUBLIC
REVIEW AND COMMENT PERIOD FOR THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
REPORT REGARDING MARINE PROTECTED AREAS IN THE CALIFORNIA SOUTH
COAST STUDY REGION PURSUANT TO THE MARINE LIFE PROTECTION ACT.
1 These facilities are accessible to persons with disabilities. To request reasonable accommodations for a disability, please contact
California Relay Service at 1 (800) 735-2929 (TT) or 1 (800) 735-2922 (Voice) and ask them to contact the California Fish and Game
Commission at (916) 653-4899.
2 The public is encouraged to comment on any item on the agenda. In order for the Commission to adequately consider public comments,
the public is requested to submit written comments no later than ten days prior to the meeting. Written comments received fewer than
ten days preceding the meeting will be submitted to the Commission at the meeting; however, Commission staff is unable to deliver
material received one day before and on the day of the meeting to the Commissioners when the meeting is not in Sacramento. Please
send your comments to be received no later than two days before the meeting.
If you

New and Proposed Regulations - Ca. Fish and Game

New and Proposed Regulations

The California Fish and Game Commission is considering the following changes to Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations. A business or a person submitting a comment to a proposed regulation or proposed amendment or repeal of a regulation has the right to request a copy of the final statement of reasons. Copies of the final statements of reasons will be available on this web page as they are prepared. Requests may also be submitted to the California Fish and Game Commission, 1416 Ninth Street, Room 1320, Sacramento, CA 95814. 
fgc.ca.gov/regulations/new/2010/proposedregs 

Victory for California Anglers

Don Benninghoven Is Not Confirmed As a Member of the Fish and Game Commission

Sacramento, CA – August 6, 2010 – Thanks to California’s grassroots anglers who loudly spoke out for a fair and unbiased process for protection of ocean resources along the California coast, the appointment of Fish and Game Commissioner Don Benninghoven was not confirmed by the State Senate. As a result, as of August 4, 2010, Mr. Benninghoven no longer sits on the Commission.  Over the past several months, thousands of concerned citizens voiced their concerns over Mr. Benninghoven’s lack of independence and objectivity as a member of the Commission, especially throughout the process of implementing the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA).

 “We are so pleased that recreational anglers from across California responded with letters to Senate President Darrell Steinberg decrying Don Benninghoven's bias in the MLPA process,” said Bob Fletcher of the Sportfishing Association of California and former Chief Deputy Director of the Department of Fish and Game.  “And we are pleased that the State Senate listened to Californians who love to fish and who love the Ocean as much as anybody.” 

In August 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed Mr. Benninghoven to the Fish & Game Commission at the last minute to vote on a proposal to close areas within California’s North Central Coast region to fishing.  Just prior to his appointment, Mr. Benninghoven had served on the panel that designed the closures.  When appointed to the Commission, Mr. Benninghoven, not surprisingly, cast what turned out to be the deciding vote to approve the very closures he had helped to design.  Had he remained on the Commission, Mr. Benninghoven would also have voted on proposed new closures in the South Coast and North Coast regions.
“Governor Schwarzenegger should take this opportunity to appoint a new Commissioner who will be independent and objective about the implementation of the MLPA,” said Dan Wolford, Science Director for California’s Coastside Fishing Club.  “Implementing the MLPA will cost California jobs and hurt our economy at the worst possible time. The very least we can ask is that a new commissioner has a fair and unbiased approach.” 
Anglers, fisheries scientists and conservationists have roundly criticized flaws in the way that the MLPA has been implemented.   Concerned recreational anglers have already hired attorneys to examine and, if necessary, to pursue a legal challenge in court on their behalf to the flawed way in which the MLPA has been and is being implemented.  
“Now we need California’s anglers to step up and help us by donating to our effort to challenge this flawed MLPA process,” said Steve Fukuto, President of United Anglers of Southern California.  “We need all California anglers to donate what they can to protect their right to fish in the Ocean.”
The recently formed Ocean Access Protection Fund will enable contributors to donate online through its website, www.OceanAccessProtectionFund.org.  
The purpose of the Fund, which is operated by the nonprofit group United Anglers of Southern California, is to provide the financial support necessary to maintain legal challenges involving the MLPA as well as future threats to recreational access to ocean and coastal waters.

UPDATE - New Location for Upcoming MLPA Scoping Meeting

UPDATE - New Location for Upcoming MLPA Scoping Meeting

Attend the meeting and make sure the interests of recreational anglers are heard!   When:            Friday, July 23, 2010 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.   Where:          Hyatt Regency Long Beach 200 South Pine Avenue Long Beach, CA 90802   IMPORTANT! The meeting location for the July 23, 2010 scoping meeting for the South Coast phase of the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) has been changed. Originally set to be held at the Port of Long Beach Administration Building, the meeting has been relocated to the Hyatt Regency Long Beach.   The purpose of the meeting is to receive input from interested agencies and the public on issues related to the potential environmental effects of the MPA proposals being considered for the South Coast region.   Please attend the public meeting on July 23 to ensure that anglers have a strong presence! The public will have an opportunity to comment at the meeting. Let the department know how important recreational fishing is to you and your family, and that additional marine reserves do not always mean more - or better - conservation! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, written comments may be e-mailed to tnapoli@dfg.ca.gov.   Visit www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/meetings_sc.asp#presentations for more information on the July 23 meeting.