California Fishermen Work Towards Balanced Marine Initiative.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- This Wednesday, August 2, 2006, the California Fish and Game Commission (CFGC) will be conducting a public hearing in Sacramento to discuss the addition of a new network of marine protected areas (MPAs) to the state's Central Coast region via the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative. The CFGC is reviewing six MPA proposal packages and is slated to make its final selection by November 2006.

At Wednesday's hearing, the California Fisheries Coalition (CFC) will be presenting a commissioned, scientific peer review report, which shows that restrictions in five of the six proposed packages will needlessly suffocate California's $5 billion commercial and recreational fishing industry. The presentation and hearing will take place at 10:00 a.m. in the First Floor Auditorium at California State Building 9, located at 744 P Street in Sacramento.

Major findings of the CFC report will be presented at the hearing by one of the three scientists that conducted and authored the study, Dr. Carl Walters, a fellow of the Pew Oceans Commission. Dr. Walters and his fellow scientists found that each of the packages before the CFGC will benefit California's marine species about equally. However, two proposals recommend closing 40 percent or more of the most productive fishing grounds, leaving Package 1 as the only proposal that integrates California's strong existing protections with systems to monitor effectiveness.

Package 1, known as the "fisherman's alternative," is the result of an unprecedented partnership between fishing industries and marine scientists. The system of MPAs presented in Package 1 take into consideration existing ocean policy, regulations, protections, and socio-economic impacts and their related costs.

The CFC's objective is to see a full and balanced implementation of the MLPA. Highly respected scientific peer reviewers found that the science guiding the MLPA implementation offers only the illusion of protection, in part because the assumptions and theories were never tested. In recommending acceptance of Package 1, the CFC is asking the CFGC and supporters of the other packages to give adequate consideration to "real costs" of imposing fisheries regulations.

The Sacramento-based CFC consists of 23 ocean-dependent recreational and commercial fishing associations, seafood processors, abalone growers, kelp harvesters, harbor officials, and coastal communities. Coalition membership encompasses more than 14,000 commercial fishermen, in excess of 4,000 fishing vessels, several million recreational anglers, more than 200 seafood companies, and coastal communities spanning the entire state. Approximately 172,000 people are employed by CFC partner businesses. The CFC asserts that if the CFGC elects to institute additional regulations, communities that rely on the fishing industry could be decimated, while offering no additional protections to marine life populations. The designation of new managed areas could restrict and, in some cases, eliminate many ocean-related activities including commercial and recreational fishing, threatening an estimated $5.5 billion impact on the state's economy.

For more information on the MLPA Initiative and the California Fisheries Coalition, and to obtain a complete copy of the scientific peer review, visit the CFC website at www.cafisheriescoalition.org.

The California Fisheries Commission represents people whose livelihoods and recreation depend on a healthy, productive marine environment. With their experience on the ocean, commercial and recreational fishermen contribute great depth to our understanding of California's marine ecosystem and have developed progressive relationships with marine research and protection advocates. CFC member associations and businesses actively support the livelihood and recreation of hundreds of thousands of California citizens and visitors. The local fish and shellfish marketed by CFC member fishermen and seafood processors reach millions of consumers in central coast communities, throughout the state of California, nationally and internationally. For more information visit www.cafisheriescoalition.org or call (916) 444 - 8194.