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OnEarth spoke with Karen Garrison, Co-Director of NRDC's ocean initiative, about California's Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which are off-limits to destructive human activities.
OE: You've referred to these reserves as "state parks of the sea." How exactly do they work?
Garrison: Marine Protected Areas were created off California's Channel Islands five years ago to improve biodiversity and ocean health. A study by biologists and economists has shown that since they were established the MPAs have increased the amount of sea life and the number of large individuals-which leads to higher productivity. The study has also shown that the predictions by some fishing groups of economic losses from the refuges did not materialize and that most boaters surveyed at overnight anchorages approved of the reserves.
OE: Why do we need marine protected areas?
Garrison: Parks and wilderness areas on land have been in place for decades, but spectacular places and biological hotspots in the ocean have rarely received the protection they deserve. As the article on abalone in San Miguel illustrates, the pressure of intensive fishing and other human activities can be devastating to marine life, especially commercially desirable species like abalone. California's local fisheries have suffered significant depletion, and species-specific management has not been enough to prevent the decline. In Los Angeles County, for example, commercial fishing revenue has dropped by half over the past 18 years.[1] A recent study found average fish size across a wide range of Pacific coast species is down by 45 percent from 20 years ago,[2] indicating a loss of big productive individuals. MPAs have been shown to boost fish size and numbers, helping replenish the waters in and outside their boundaries. Networks of protected areas also help increase biodiversity relative to nearby fished areas, supporting healthier oceans.
OE: How are marine protected areas being created in California?
Garrison: In 1999, California adopted the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which requires a comprehensive network of underwater parks, or MPAs, to ensure our ocean remains healthy and productive for future generations. The state's new network of MPAs is being designed regionally, in five phases, with the goal of statewide implementation by 2011. The creation of each regional network involves intensive public participation and the use of sound science to guide decisions about where the protected areas should be located.
OE: How can the public get involved in designing California's MPAs?
Garrison: Public involvement is a key part of the Marine Life Protection Act. The first region of marine protected areas, the Central Coast, and the second region, the North Central Coast, have both been designed with extensive citizen input and are now being implemented. The South Coast network planning process is currently underway, scheduled to be completed in mid-2010. The North Coast process has begun and will last through 2010. There are many opportunities for public participation in meetings and other planning activities; these are announced on the Marine Life Protection Act website, http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/.
[1] Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission, Pacific Fisheries Information Network: http://pacfin.psmfc.org/
[2] Levin, Phillip S. et al., Shifts in a Pacific Ocean fish assemblage: the potential influence of exploitation, Conservation Biology, 2006
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