Posted by Chris on May 17, 2001 at 17:41:26:
We as divers have input on the formation of the details of the Marine Life Protection Act.
Up until now, the primary inputs have been from the commercial fishing industry.
There will be a series of meetings throughout the state in the latter part of July.
If we as divers and the local dive industry want our interests protected, we need to attend these meetings and make our presence felt.
Do you really want the formation of the regulations primarily determined with input only from the commercial fishing industry?
I just received the following from the California State Park Service.
Please read it and plan on making time to attend one of the scheduled meetings.
Chris Grossman
webmaster
Scuba Divers Network
Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) web site: www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/mlma/
MLPA Hearing Schedule: diver.net/mlpa/MLPA_meeting_shedule.pdf
The following MLPA Notice: diver.net/mlpa/MLPA_info1.pdf
May 17, 2001
To individuals interested in the Marine Life Protection Act:
The Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA: Assembly bill 993 authored by Assemblyman Shelly) became effective January 1, 2000.
This language is now included in the Fish and Game Code (Sections 2850 to 2863). The purpose of the act is to improve the array of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in California waters through a comprehensive Master Plan that the Department of Fish and Game (Department) is required to develop.
This Master Plan will recommend alternative MPA networks within state waters (from shore out to three miles) to the Fish and Game Commission (Commission).
The MLPA requires the Department to present the draft Master Plan to the Commission by January 1, 2002. A Master Plan Team (Team), consisting of Department and other agency representatives and eight scientists, is assisting the Department in developing the Master Plan.
This letter is to inform you of the Team's approach to develop the Master Plan.
Goals and Approach
The basic goals of the MLPA are: 1) to help sustain, conserve and protect marine populations and ecosystems for their economic and intrinsic value; 2) to help rebuild depleted marine populations; 3) to improve recreational, educational, and study opportunities; and 4) to ensure that California's MPAs have clearly defined objectives, effective management measures, adequate enforcement, and are based on sound scientific principles.
The Master Plan recommendation will include existing and newly proposed MPAs. Each MPA will be re-named or named using a new classification system established by the Marine Managed Areas Improvement Act (Assembly Bill 2800{Shelly}).
These new classifications are:
State Marine Reserve: Injuring, damaging, taking or possessing and living, geological or cultural marine resource ("take") is prohibited. Some scientific collecting by permit may be allowed.
State Marine Park: Commercial take is prohibited. Recreational take and scientific collecting by permit will be allowed, although some forms of recreational take may be restricted.
State Marine Conservation Area: Certain commercial and recreational take and scientific collecting by permit may be allowed.
The Team has divided California marine waters into four regions based on assemblages of similar marine animals, plants and habitats:
North marine region: California-Oregon border to Pt. Arena.
North-Central marine region: Pt. Arena to Pt. Aņo Nuevo, including the Farallon Islands.
South-Central marine region: Pt. Aņo Nuevo to Pt. Conception, including San Miguel, Santa Rosa, and San Nicolas Islands.
South marine region: Pt. Conception to California-Mexico border, including Santa Cruz, Anacapa, Santa Barbara, Santa Catalina and San Clemente Islands.
The Team has identified eight major habitat types to be represented in MPA networks. These consist of hard and soft seafloor in four depth ranges: intertidal, 0-30 meters (0-100 ft.), 30-200 meters (100-660 ft.), and greater than 200 meters. Networks will also include, where feasible, spawning and nursery areas and the following specialized habitats: rocky reefs, underwater pinnacles, kelp forests, submarine canyons, and sea grass beds.
As an initial step, California's existing MPAs are being evaluated for incorporation into the Master Plan. In order to achieve the MLPA goals, the Team may recommend additional MPAs and modification of boundaries and the degree of protection in existing MPAs. The MLPA requires that similar types of habitats and communities be replicated, to the extent possible, in more than one State Marine Reserve in each region.
In recommending specific sites, the Team will also consider species most likely to benefit from protection.
More Information:
We will provide more information and seek comment during two series of public meetings and workshops. These are scheduled for July (see attached schedule) and tentatively September 2001 and will be held throughout the State.
The draft master plan is required to be completed by January 2002.
Once completed, the draft plan will be available for public review and comment.
Formal public comment will also be available during Commission hearings concerning the implementation of the Master Plan.
These will most likely occur in the spring of 2002.
Information of the location and classification of California's existing MPAs are described in "California Marine Protected Areas" (McArdle 1997, California Sea Grant, La Jolla, CA).
For more details about the MLPA and Marine Managed Areas improvement Act, go to www.sen.ca.gov, click "Legislation", and search the 1999-2000 Assembly Session for AB993 and AB2800.
Also visit the MLPA link at the Department of Fish & Game's Marine Region web site: www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/index.html. The MLPA web site also includes a summary of regulations for each existing MPA.
The team lead is:
Paul Reilly
Department of Fish and Game
20 Lower Ragsdale Drive, Suite 100
Monterey, CA 93940
W. James Barry, Ph.D.
Senior State Park Ecologist
MLPA Planning team member