Heal the Bay Blog

We’ve been getting lots of questions about the recent uptick in strandings of sea lions in Southern California. We have gathered information from our partners at the California Wildlife Center and NOAA to help you understand what is happening and what to do if you see an animal on shore.

Don’t touch and do not pick up, pour water on or feed the animal. They are wild animals and can bite. They also are easily stressed by humans.

Do not return the animal to the water. Seals and sea lions temporarily haul-out on land to rest. Harbor seal mothers often leave their pups ashore while they’re feeding at sea. A beached whale, dolphin, or porpoise should be reported immediately.

Observe the animal from a distance of at least 50 feet. Keep people and dogs away.

Note physical characteristics such as size, presence of external earflaps, and fur color. This helps determine the species, and what rescue equipment and volunteers are needed.

Note the animal’s condition. Is it weak and underweight? Are there any open wounds?

Note distinguishing marks. Does the animal have any obvious identification tags or markings?

Note location. Determine the exact location of the animal in order to provide accurate directions.

Seek help. For marine mammal rescues along the Malibu coastline, please call California Wildlife Center at 310-458-WILD. For marine mammal rescues from Pacific Palisades to Wilmington, please call Marine Animal Rescue (1-800-39-WHALE).

And here are some answers to frequently asked questions about the strandings.

Why are sea lions stranding?

California sea lions can strand for a number of reasons, including injury, illness, and weather and/or ocean conditions. This early on in the stranding event it is very difficult to pinpoint what is causing the increased strandings in 2015; however we do have several factors to keep a close eye on. In the 2013 Unusual Mortality Event (UME), which started out very much like this year, the UME Investigation Team and NOAA Fisheries determined that a change in availability of sea lion prey was a likely contributor to the event. Availability of prey is very important for nursing sea lion mothers; for the pups as they begin to wean and start foraging on their own; and for the other age classes of sea lions as well. Therefore, prey availability (including amount, type, quality, and location) is one factor that we will continue to monitor in 2015.

Other potential causes for large numbers of increased strandings included infectious disease outbreaks and harmful algal blooms. We currently have no indication of either of these issues being involved in the current event, but NOAA continues to collect the necessary samples to definitively rule these other factors as causes of the event. As the year progresses NOAA will continue to monitor the health of the stranded animals and partner with scientists in other specialties such as oceanography to help determine if environmental causes may be influencing the increased sea lion strandings.

What role does El Nino play?

Late 2014 and early 2015 have presented El Nino conditions, which means that the California current has been experiencing warmer waters than usual. Changes in sea surface temperature can have significant impacts throughout the food web. Historically, El Nino years have resulted in high numbers of marine mammal strandings, likely due to changes in prey availability and increased physiologic stress on the animals.

What about the state of young pups?

NOAA Fisheries scientists observe the breeding rookeries for a period of time each year. What they have seen this year as far as pup weight is very similar to what they observed before the 2013 Unusual Mortality Event. They have also noticed that the overall growth rate for pups is actually down a bit from 2013 so these observations do lead NOAA to be concerned about 2015 pup survival rates and predicted increases in strandings of pups on the mainland. At this time, the increase in strandings seems confined to California sea lion pups (born summer 2014). All live animals are currently being rescued and taken to stranding network centers. Consistent findings in the pups are emaciation and dehydration with most animals very underweight for their age.

How big is California’s sea lion population?

The species overall is very healthy with an estimated population of 300,000. That was not always the case, in 1972 the population was very low and the implementation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act really helped to save the sea lion population. The most recent Stock Assessment Report for California sea lions was issued in 2011. The current estimated total population size is roughly 300,000 animals, with an annual increase of 5.4%. The main U.S. breeding rookeries are located on the Channel Islands and California sea lion pups are born on the islands of San Miguel, San Clemente, San Nicholas and Santa Barbara. California sea lions in the U.S. are not listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act or as depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. In general, the population is increasing, although there have been periods when the population abundance has declined due to factors such as El Nino events, disease and prey availability.

March 12, 2015 — Building on a long-standing partnership, Heal the Bay has named Time Warner Cable as its Beach Healer for the month of March.

TWC employees and their family members will participate in a cleanup at Santa Monica Beach near the iconic Pier this Saturday at 8:30 a.m. In addition to removing ocean-bound debris, 300 volunteers will learn about the causes of ocean pollution and what steps they can take in their daily lives to reduce impacts on our shorelines.

“Heal the Bay relies on the community to help us keep Santa Monica Bay vibrant and thriving,” said Danielle Portnoy, Heal the Bay’s Advancement Director. “It’s heartening to see so many Time Warner Cable staff willing to donate their Saturday morning to our cause. It demonstrates that they are committed and that they care.”

Time Warner Cable is a longtime supporter of Heal the Bay’s educational initiatives, through its Connect a Million Minds program. TWC served as the presenting sponsor of the 2^nd annual Rube Goldberg Contest at the Santa Monica Pier, held last November. Engineering teams from local colleges and high schools competed to construct contraptions that will erase a chalkboard in a wacky fashion.

“Time Warner Cable is committed to promoting environmental awareness and sustainability,” said Katherine McDonald, Time Warner Cable’s Community Investment Manager. “Heal the Bay has been a terrific partner in our STEM efforts, and we are excited to work with them to further our ‘Go Green’ efforts and volunteerism among our employees.”

Heal the Bay hosts dozens of companies each year for cleanups as part of its ongoing Corporate Healer program, which fosters camaraderie and improved morale. Participants also leave the beach with the satisfaction of knowing they helped reduce blight, protected marine animals and boosted the regional economy.

If your company is intertested in participating in a cleanup or our Adopt-a-Beach program, please contact Afarin Davari.

March 3, 2015 — Yessssss! No oil drilling in the Bay.

Voters in Hermosa Beach today overwhelmingly rejected an oil company’s proposal to begin oil drilling underneath the seafloor there, according to initial election returns. Heal the Bay staff and volunteers led the charge to defeat the ill-conceived project, which would have set a dangerous precedent for further oil exploration in L.A. waters.

E&B Natural Resources, a Bakersfield-based oil company, outspent Heal the Bay and other grassroots opponents nearly 10-to-1 in its losing bid to sink 34 wells in the 1.4-square mile coastal city. Big Oil may have deep pockets, but we have a secret weapon: you and thousands of other ocean lovers who simply can’t stand to see the Bay opened up to oil drilling.

Thanks to our supporters, Heal the Bay had the resources to mount a comprehensive and integrated 18-month campaign to halt the project. Staff and volunteers reviewed technical reports, canvassed neighborhoods, manned phone banks, organized community rallies, testified at City Council meetings, created newspaper ads and mobilized opponents on social media.

And you know what? It worked. Nearly 80% of voters rejected drilling in their town! We employed the same strategy in Hermosa that’s been Heal the Bay’s trademark for the past 30 years: passionate advocacy guided by sound science and consensus-driven community input. We are proud to be part of a broad-based coalition that helped protect the Bay, led by such champions as Keep Hermosa Hermosa, the Surfrider Foundation, the NRDC, Food & Water Watch and thousands of individual citizens.

The truth is that we dodged a bullet in Hermosa, but corporate interests continue to target the Bay for further industrial uses.

Our staff scientists recently collaborated with the NRDC on a detailed study that mapped the entire Los Angeles coastal zone and identified areas vulnerable to oil exploration. Many don’t realize it, but several areas underneath our local ocean are at risk, ranging from Long Beach to Malibu. Our policy team will remain vigilant and advocate against potential oil projects off our local coastline.

But we’re not just worried about drills and spills. The Bay faces other industrial threats. For example, corporations are drawing up plans to build desalination plants along the California Coast. In a time of water scarcity, energy-intensive desal plants shouldn’t take the place of smart water conservation and reuse. We shouldn’t just rubber stamp these potentially destructive plants, which suck up millions of gallons of seawater daily.

Whenever harmful proposals pop up, Heal the Bay will be there to gather the facts, do the analysis, speak up and push back when warranted. We’re proud to be the watchdog of the Bay. But to have any bite, we need the political and financial support of the community.

If this work is important to you, please consider contributing to our special Advocacy Fund this March. Any donations made this calendar month will be matched by a generous supporter who values our ongoing policy work.

March 3, 2015—We may have lost one battle. But we haven’t lost the war to keep oil drilling out of Santa Monica Bay.

Voters in Hermosa Beach have narrowly approved an oil company’s proposal to begin drilling underneath the seafloor there, based on initial results from today’s election. E&B Natural Resources, a Bakersfield-based corporation, outspent Heal the Bay and other grassroots opponents nearly 10-to-1 in its bid to sink 34 wells in the 1.4-square mile coastal city.

We believe that low turnout and a misinformation campaign funded by Big Oil led to the narrow passage of Measure O. Voters seemed to be swayed by wildly speculative promises of royalty revenues, despite the obvious risks of oil spills and impacts to quality of life from drilling.

While the vote is disappointing, there is some good news to share: This dangerous and ill-advised project is far from a sure thing.

And that’s where you come in.

Big Oil may have deep pockets, but we have a secret weapon – you and thousands of other ocean lovers who simply can’t stand to see the Bay opened up to oil drilling.

There is no oil drilling in the Bay now, and we aim to keep it that way by using the best science and passionate advocacy to deny E&B the necessary regulatory permits. If E&B is allowed to proceed in Hermosa, it would set a terrible precedent for further industrialization of the Bay.

Heal the Bay’s science and policy team is assembling a multi-tiered campaign to persuade the California Coastal Commission and State Lands Commission to withhold permits to E&B based on numerous safety and health risks outlined in the official Environmental Impact Report. We’re already reviewing technical documents, gathering expert scientific testimony, preparing legal arguments in consultation with our partners and mobilizing political support.

We got our start in 1985 by leading the grassroots fight to stop the Hyperion Treatment Plant from dumping partially treated sewage in the Bay. We’ve come too far in the three decades since to allow oil drilling under the Bay. A spill would be disastrous for our entire region, not just Hermosa.

We will keep you posted on ways you can lend your voice to stop this project in coming months.

We will prevail.

We ask you to please consider contributing to our special No Oil Fund this March. Any donations made this calendar month will be matched by a generous supporter who values our history of effective policy work.

Feb. 24, 2015 — Well, it looks like it may be time to bring back our Bag Monster. We thought we had put our symbol of Big Plastic out to pasture with last year’s passage of a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags. But the plastics industry has thrown millions of dollars into a voter referendum to halt the common-sense legislation.

The California Secretary of State announced today that the referendum sponsored by opponents of California’s single-use bag ban has qualified, which will put implementation of the bag law, SB 270, on hold. Voters will now decide whether or not the ban lives in the November 2016 election.

The plastic bag industry, primarily driven by out-of-state support, has sunk over $3.2 million into its campaign to repeal this landmark pollution prevention law. But, Heal the Bay, along with our partners in the California vs. Big Plastic coalition, are not backing down.

Thankfully, voters agree that it’s time to eliminate the single-use bags, which are a powerful symbol of our throw-away consumer culture. A poll by USC Dornslife/Los Angeles Times showed that about six in 10 California voters support the ban, while 34% would vote to overturn the law.

Removal of the plastic bag ban wouldn’t just harm the environment, it would be bad for the economy. California cities and counties spend an estimated $428 million annually to clean up litter and prevent plastic pollution. Flimsy, discarded bags are a blight to our communities, and harmful to aquatic life, like sea turtles and birds.

So what does this mean for shoppers throughout California? The 138 local plastic bag bans that were enacted prior to passage of the state law will remain in place, in areas like the city and county of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Long Beach. Referendum qualification will freeze implementation of SB 270, as originally scheduled, so retailers in communities without plastic bag bans may continue to distribute free plastic bags.

But, nothing is keeping individual municipalities from acting against the plastic sack scourge. Right now, nearly one in three Californians live in a municipality that has banned bags. Since implementation of the statewide law is on hold, members of California vs. Big Plastic will continue to advocate for the adoption of local bans.

Investigation of the legitimacy of the plastic industry’s signature gathering practices will continue as well. After widespread voter complaints of signature gathering fraud, the California Attorney General mounted an investigation earlier this year into whether deceptive signature gathering practices were employed.

It’s troubling to think that out-of-state plastic corporations can buy their way onto the ballot. Let’s stand up and show them we are proud to move past costly and polluting plastic bags.

Our science and policy team will continue to work with our partners to help uphold the ban. We’ll keep you posted on ways you can help in the months to come.

We always get questions about plastic bags. We recently assembled an FAQ that details many of the myths and facts about the mysterious bag.

The Plastic Bag Monster has won a brief reprieve. But his days are numbered ….

Swimming in the Bay

Unfortunate as it may be, humans can become ill from contact with polluted water found in Santa Monica Bay.

This fact was proven conclusively in 1995 through a groundbreaking epidemiological study designed to determine how exposure to ocean water bacteria relates to human illness. The study, which Heal the Bay assisted with, found that you are twice as likely to get sick swimming in front of a flowing storm drain compared to swimming in clean ocean water 400 yards away. The bottom line is that contact with ocean water with high bacteria levels increases one’s risk of getting sick.

The two most common illnesses contracted from contact with polluted ocean water are stomach flu & upper respiratory infections. Additional problems can include skin rashes and ear, nose and throat infections.

Wait at least 72 hours after a rain storm

When it rains, pollutants that have been accumulating on the streets and in the catch basins get whisked through the storm drain system to the ocean, dramatically increasing bacteria levels in the Bay. Heal the Bay recommends avoiding all ocean water contact during a storm and waiting at least 72 hours (3 days) after it has stopped raining before going into the ocean as well as avoiding storm drain impacted and enclosed beaches for 5 to 10 days after a storm. This provides time for bacteria levels to return to safe levels. And remember, over 95% of the time beaches along the Santa Monica Bay are safe in dry weather.

Avoid flowing storm drains

Swim at least 100 yards away from where the storm drain flow enters the surf. You are twice as likely to get sick if you swim in front of a flowing storm drain due to increased bacteria concentrations from urban runoff.

Do not play in storm drain puddles

Shallow puddles of water on the sand between a storm drain and the surf may appear safe, warm and inviting for children, but this water is urban runoff, filled with bacteria that can cause illness. Although there may not always be warning signs surrounding puddles of urban runoff, this water is never safe for swimming.

Avoid enclosed beaches

Many beaches named “Mother’s Beach” (e.g. in Marina del Rey, Los Angeles County) or “Baby Beach” (in Dana Point, Orange County) are enclosed with poor tidal circulation. Bacteria levels are usually much higher and tend to survive longer in duration at enclosed beaches than those exposed to the open ocean due to the lack of water circulation. Although enclosed beaches appear safe and inviting to children, parents should research water quality conditions carefully before allowing their children to swim at these beaches.

Eating Fish From the Bay

Is it safe to eat fish from Santa Monica Bay and Southern California coastal waters? It can be if you follow our precautions.

Many people catch and eat fish from the waters off the coasts of L.A. and Orange counties. Because fish from these areas may contain DDT, PCBs and methylmercury, people who consume such fish may be ingesting these chemical contaminants and putting their health at risk.  Heal the Bay’s Angler Outreach workers spend their days on local piers, talking to subsistence fishermen about how to avoid contaminated fish and lessen their exposure to these chemicals.

To safeguard your health when consuming fish caught in Santa Monica Bay and surrounding coastal waters, use the information below to reduce your risk of exposure to toxic chemicals. For additional information, visit the Fish Contamination Education Collaborative.

Avoid white croaker

White croaker (also called kingfish or tomcod) generally contains higher levels DDT and PCB than other fish from the Santa Monica Bay area. This is primarily because the white croaker is a non-migratory fish that feeds off the ocean floor where these chemicals have settled. In fact, a 1997 Heal the Bay study on the white croaker found that an astounding 84% of the samples tested exceeded EPA’s “acceptable cancer risk level” for DDT.

Avoid fishing in contaminated areas

Several areas exist along the coast of Los Angeles and Orange counties where fish are likely to contain higher levels of DDTs and PCBs than those fish caught outside of these areas. These contaminated areas include Cabrillo Pier, White Point, Pier J, Belmont Pier and Point Vicente. The highest levels of DDTs and PCBs in ocean sediment are found about one to three miles offshore of the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

Follow the consumption recommendations 

Heed the Fish Consumption Recommendations, which shows how much of each fish caught from the different zones in the Bay one can safely eat (brochures and pocket guides). Since chemicals can pose greater health risks to babies and young children, it is particularly important for women of childbearing age, pregnant women, and nursing mothers to follow the fish consumption recommendations.

This Thank You Thursday is one big Valentine to our partners and the people of Hermosa Beach who joined us for our Pop-up Pep Rally on Feb. 7

Heal the Bay is going all out to defeat Big Oil in Hermosa Beach leading up to the city’s March 3rd vote on whether to keep the current moratorium on oil drilling in place. Together with partners Surfrider Foundation and Keep Hermosa Hermosa, we hosted a giant outdoor party that brought out the community for a celebratory day of community action, awareness, musical performances, food and good fun.

We couldn’t have done it without the generosity of Becker Surf Shop and its amazing (and musical!) management team of Bob Rich and Kira Lingman. Becker gave up its parking lot for the day and offered staggering discounts on merch while partygoers munched on cheesy deliciousness from The Grilled Cheese Truck and people of all ages made a show of hands (oily black hand prints, that is) for a Vote No On O banner–all to the rockin’ beat of Lingman and her band The Hollow Legs.

And the music never stopped, with guest appearances by The Spillage People (fabulously choreographed by our friends at The Pretenders Studio) and Allan Mason–Hermosa’s own Pete Seeger–who led the crowd in his anthem “Send em’ back to Bakersfield.”

It was an incredible day, and we’re so grateful for all our friends who helped make it happen!

Check out our Facebook album for pictures from the party!