Heal the Bay Blog

Category: Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey

Maps of Recently Approved MPAs

01.27.2011 | Dana Murray

If you’ve been following the news about Marine Protected Areas, you might know that a map of these critical portions of protected habitat was recently approved for Southern California. This means that once the MPAs go into effect in mid-2011, fishing will be restricted or prohibited in specific areas along the coastline.

If you’re interested in finding out more about our new set of MPAs, you can check out an interactive map that shows where the MPAs are and details about the regulations.

Once you get to the map, click on “MPAs, Arrays, and Proposals” in the upper right hand corner. Check the “Adopted MLPA South Coast MPAs” box. Then zoom in and click on specific MPAs to learn more about the regulations and details for each site. You can access the maps at marinemap.org.

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LA to Finalize LID Ordinance

01.19.2011 | Heal the Bay

About Us Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

On January 20, the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation will hold an informational meeting on the low impact development ordinance.

This landmark regulation will help cut down on the amount of polluted runoff that reaches our beaches by requiring new and redevelopment projects to capture rainwater on site, allowing it to filter into the ground and recharge local groundwater supplies. To learn about the ordinance, which was passed in Dec 2010, members of the public can attend the meeting.

For more information, visit lastormwater.org.

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Rain Doesn't Mean an End to Drought

01.14.2011 | Heal the Bay

Long Beach / Avalon Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula South Bay

It’s been a wet winter, so does that mean it’s ok to be a little more cavalier with our watering habits? Like, maybe, we can rip out that rock garden and install a nice sloping lawn? The answer, apparently, is no.

Yes, the rain has recharged reservoirs and built up a nice snow pack that will please skiiers and snowboarders all winter long, and also provide water for much of the state, but Southern California still needs to learn to live with the water we have. Which isn’t much.

SoCal is, and always will be, a desert, and the more water we use, the more water we suck from rivers and the aquatic life that call those rivers home, as well as agriculture. Plus, when we do get rain, we funnel it straight out to the ocean instead of trying to capture and reuse it. We need to figure out how to use less water, as a region, and be more creative with our limited rainfall. Read more at the LA Times.

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Insane Rain

12.22.2010 | Heal the Bay

Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

It looks like the rain might finally be slowing down, but that just means the clean-up can begin. Among the downed trees and mudslides, there are also some ocean issues for you to keep in mind. This much rain carries huge amounts of bacteria and pollution straight through the stormdrain system to the beach, and can also cause sewage spills. Make sure you stay out of the ocean for a full 72 hours and avoid stormdrain impacted and enclosed beaches for 5 to 10 days after a storm, to give the bacteria time to disperse. You might even want to wait a little bit longer, given how much rain fell.

For up-to-date info, check out the Beach Report Card.

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San Jose Does it Right

12.17.2010 | Heal the Bay

Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

San Jose banned the bag! Just the latest in a series of local goverments doing the right thing. Locally, Long Beach did it, as did LA County. All of these local bans on plastic bags are going to help end the blight that litters our streets, beaches and parks, and kills our marine life. But as the San Jose Mercury News points out, a statewide ban would be more effective, easier to implement, and better all around.

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Marine Protected Areas Approved for Southern California

12.15.2010 | Heal the Bay

Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Marine Protected Areas News Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

In a history-making decision for ocean protection, the California Fish and Game Commission approved a collection of Marine Protected Areas for Southern California. The decision, made on December 15, 2010 in Santa Barbara, is the final step in a multi-year collaborative process to establish a network of safe havens for marine life throughout the region as a part of the implementation of the California Marine Life Protection Act.

More About the Dec. 15 MPAs Approval
Heal the Bay Press Release
Spouting Off Blog
Map of Approved MPAs
Dept. of Fish & Game News Release

More About MPAs
MPAs Fact Sheet
MPAs Web Page
Marine Life Protection Act Initiative – South Coast Study Region

The network of south coast MPAs was created by a stakeholder group consisting of representatives from environmental and fishing communities, local government officials and educators. Heal the Bay was extremely active in the MPA process, representing the conservation community and also providing a science-based perspective. Our participation was spearheaded by Sarah Sikich, Heal the Bay’s Coastal Resources Director, who served as a member of the taskforce charged with drawing up the map of MPAs.

The final map of MPAs creates 36 new MPAs encompassing about 187 square miles of state waters (~8% of the South Coast), with about 5% designated as fully-protected no-take areas, leaving the vast majority open to fishing.

Locally, this network includes:

A marine reserve east of Point Dume in Malibu
A partial take marine conservation area off Zuma Beach
A marine reserve and partial take marine conservation area at Abalone Cove and Point Vicente in Palos Verdes
A partial take marine conservation area at Farnsworth Banks
A marine reserve at Long Point and Wrigley for Catalina Island

By protecting the entire ecosystem in select Southern California waters, these MPAs will help restore and safeguard marine life and coastal heritage for future generations. Southern California’s new network of MPAs will take effect in 2011, following a period where local communities will be educated on MPAs.

Southern California’s MPAs join such ecologically diverse areas as California’s northern Channel Islands, the Florida Keys and New Zealand in establishing safe havens for marine life to thrive and reproduce.

MPAs Overview

Southern California’s marine ecosystems are stressed and continue to face many threats such as polluted runoff, marine debris, habitat destruction, and overfishing. Kelp beds throughout the Santa Monica Bay have declined substantially since the early 1900s. Several fish stocks have crashed statewide, causing many fisheries to be closed or severely limited. The majority of fishing throughout the State occurs in Southern California – together, Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties account for over half the recreational fishing activity in California.

Currently 13% of land on earth is protected. However, less than 0.5% of the oceans are protected. As a valuable tool for both ecosystem protection and fisheries management, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are likely to help replenish depleted fish populations. MPAs have shown to be effective in parts of California, the Florida Keys, New Zealand, and in close to 50 other countries around the world.

Marine Protected Areas, or MPAs, consist of three levels of protection:

State Marine Reserves, in which no fishing is allowed
State Marine Parks, in which commercial fishing is prohibited but recreational fishing is allowed
State Marine Conservation Areas, in which commercial and recreational fishing are allowed in limited amounts. MPAs do not restrict access or any other kind of recreational use

Learn more about MPAs.

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A Well-Earned MPA Victory!

12.15.2010 | Dana Murray

Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Marine Protected Areas Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

After two years of marathon stakeholder negotiation sessions, endless contentious public hearings and reams of studies and environmental documents, the California Department of Fish and Game today finally established a network of Marine Protected Areas in Southern California, passing a slightly revised version of the Integrated Preferred Alternative by a 3-2 vote.

The final vote reflects tough compromise. The maps protect some key places from extractive uses, like Point Dume, Naples and La Jolla, but fail to meet scientific guidelines in some locations. (For example, the fishermen won the battle for Rocky Point, and the MPA at Farnsworth Banks is little more than a paper park). The commission also made a few small changes at Swami’s and La Jolla in San Diego County.

The final hearing and vote took place in Santa Barbara, a fitting location given that the northern Channel Islands became California’s first designated marine protected areas years ago.

A Holiday Gift to Big Oil

12.10.2010 | Heal the Bay

Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

No surprises. Today, the State Lands Commission provided an early Christmas present to Chevron.

As if they needed it.

The Commission voted 2-1 (controller Chiang was the no vote) to approve a 30 year lease for the offshore marine terminal used by oil tankers. No changes and nearly free rent of the Bay for the next 30 years (any renters out there getting longer than an annual lease? Even a 5 year lease?). And worse, no new marine mammal protection measures. Zero. Zed. Zippo. Zilch.

Was it the support from Manhattan Beach, El Segundo, the Sea World Hubbs Research institute, the Tree Musketeers, the Roundhouse, and the long beach sportfishing community? I felt bad that all of the recipients of Chevron’s philanthropy were obligated to speak in support of the lease. But I don’t think it influenced the Commission’s decision. That was greased long ago between Chevron, Maldonado and the Governor.

The Local Aquarium Network

12.10.2010 | Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay Aquarium Long Beach / Avalon Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica

Did you know that the Aquarist staff at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium collects the majority of the animals we exhibit? We don’t order these animals online and we don’t run to the local store to buy a new fish or invertebrates. A Scientific Collections Permit from the California Department of Fish and Game allows us to dive and collect organisms for display at the Aquarium. But every once in a while, when we are looking for new, elusive and hard to find animals, we need to call out to our friends in the network.

Over the years, the Aquarium staff has developed very special relationships with neighboring aquaria and marine science learning facilities. This unique network helps all of us in the fight for marine conservation and the pursuit of marine science.

One special relationship is with the folks at the Catalina Island Marine Institute, CIMI. Over the years we have had the pleasure of using their facilities when we dive and collect animals in the waters surrounding Catalina. We also have helped each other by sharing animals, knowledge and support. In fact, there are current staff members at the Aquarium that used to work at CIMI and some CIMI staffers that first worked as interns at the Aquarium!

Last week, as the CIMI camps closed for the winter break, we received many new animals from Camp Fox and Camp Toyon, including sunflower sea stars, a juvenile sheephead and the rare slate pencil urchin, Eucidaris. The animals came over on the ferry, transported in coolers with battery-operated aerators. Some of these animals will become part of the Aquarium’s permanent collections, but some will live here temporarily. Our staff will care for these critters as if they were our own and once the CIMI camps reopen in January, the Aquarium staff will carefully pack up the animals in transport coolers to sail back across to Santa Catalina Island.

Most of these animals are currently being held off exhibit in quarantine to ensure they are acclimating to their new environment. We hope to exhibit some of the species after the new year, so please grab your friends and family and visit the Aquarium to see what’s new.

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Malibu Sea Serpent

12.06.2010 | Heal the Bay

Long Beach / Avalon Malibu / Pacific Palisades Marina del Rey / Playa del Rey Palos Verdes Peninsula Santa Monica South Bay Venice Beach

You might have already heard about the awesome fish that washed up in Malibu last week. It was more than 10 feet long, shaped like a ribbon, and is a very unusual visitor to our beaches. This oarfish, which was correctly identified by an eight-year-old who came across it lying on the beach, is a very rarely seen deep sea fish.

In fact, there are only a couple of known cases in which oarfish have come ashore.They can grow up to 35 feet long and are awesome looking, with silver scales and bright red fins, and are actually thought to be the original sea serpents that appear in sailor legends. Unfortunately, they only come to shore when they are close to death, and this fish, while originally spotted live and in the water, died shortly afterwards and washed ashore.

It was sent to the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum, which will conduct tests and possibly put this awesome creature on display. If you’ve been to the the Natural History Museum, you might have already seen the 14 foot oarfish in a glass case in the grand foyer. That specimen washed ashore on Catalina, but only after scientists from the Wrigley Marine Science Center got some photos of it swimming in Big Fisherman Cove. Having such a rare creature wash up in our own backyard is exciting for everyone, but especially for the SoCal marine science community!