Wish They All Could Be California...

Wish they all could be California...Marine Protected Areas (MPA).

The state has created large, ecosystem-based MPA.  As usual, the challenge to accommodate fishermen has to be weighed against the recovery of one of nature's most generous gifts.  Right now the fishermen are angry and the environmentalists are giddy.  Hopefully they can find a middle ground.

We know the protected areas are effective, and it usually comes down to a question of enforcement.

“The difference inside the reserve versus outside the reserve is so dramatic,” David Kushner, a biologist with the National Park Service, said. “If you’re swimming underwater, it is pretty easy to see the difference. You’ll see larger fish such as sheepshead and kelp bass and ocean white fish and large lobsters, according to the New York Times Green Blog.

“Immediately upon swimming outside of the marine reserve, those fish are all of a sudden smaller and there’s fewer of them,” he said.

The ecosystem approach favored by the state of California is unparalleled. But questions abound over whether the economically strapped Department of Fish and Game will be be able to properly enforce the rules regarding the new reserves, according to the story, according to the story. 

Let's hope they are successful.  Remember, healthy seas mean healthy people.