In Reply to: MLPA Planning Process, Call for Input posted by Stephen G. Benavides on November 26, 2008 at 10:31:17:

Thank you for your post Steve, and thank you for your efforts for recreational scuba divers.

My concern is that one representative may not be enough. There are many recreational diving activities that take place in the ocean. Classes and instruction, hunting, underwater photography/videography, wreck diving, naturalist, research diving, kelp restoration, trash and fishing gear removal, deeper technical diving, and underwater exploration, are just a few of the recreational diving activities that come to mind.

The recreational diver sees what is under the ocean first hand. We are the group that brings back the trip reports, the photos, and the videos. Many of us consider the underwater environment to be our second home. The scientific representation on the committee is awesome - however, I have yet to see any of them sitting at their underwater desk.

California is unlike most major dive destinations. Our water is cooler and our visibility often less. Our travel economy is based heavily on places like Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm instead of our ocean habitat. However, that does not mean that what we have out there isn't just as awesome as Grand Cayman or the South Pacific. In many instances, what we have is in fact much more beautiful and impressive - it just isn't backed by the advertising dollar.

My first question is: "Is one recreational diver representative enough?" I believe that you are consumptive. Is there a non consumptive recreational diver representative in the group?

• Re: Re: MLPA Planning Process, Call for Input - my first input is......... Steve Benavides 10:39:24 11/28/08 (2)
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