California Assembly votes to protect little fish to sustain wildlife

The California Assembly on Thursday passed a bill that would enact new protections for small ocean fish at the lower end of the food chain by placing a value on leaving them in the water.

The bill by Assemblyman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael), approved on a 44-23 vote, would require state wildlife regulators crafting Fishery Management Plans to consider how many small forage fish such as sardines, anchovies, herring and market squid should be left in the ocean to sustain wildlife.

The California Department of Fish and Game traditionally has managed fish species by dividing the catch among recreational and commercial and fishing groups, with no share assigned to marine wildlife that eat them. The bill would require the agency to factor in "ecological services rendered" by small fish, including their role in feeding natural predators.

“Even though they're not the majestic mega-fauna like whales that draw so much attention from people, those smaller fish are a main food source for larger marine mammals and recreationally and commercially important fish species,” said Ashley Blacow, a spokeswoman for the conservation group Oceana, a supporter of the bill.

Backers of the measure, including a coalition of conservationists, some fishing groups and seafood restaurant owners, say leaving more small fish in the ocean could help reverse declines in larger, predator species that feed on them, such as Chinook salmon, rockfish, white sea bass and marine mammals.

If the bill is passed by the state Senate and signed by the governor, it would take effect in 2012.

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Comments

[Dr Jay Veeoh]

Nice to know that the California Assy is now managing the quantities of small vs big fish in the ocean.

Please let me know the results ! (if it is any better than the manner in which they manage their finances it will be a break- through of major proportions)

[Ed]

This bill is unrealistic. In no way, shape, or fashion can anyone determine on a yearly basis, with any accuracy, what the total abundance of any forage fish is.

Herring estimates have historically been the best estimates and have proven to be lacking in accuracy. Sardines have been cyclical in nature and have never been modeled with any accuracy that could serve as the grounds for fisheries managers to make sound decisions.

Anchovies, krill, sand lance, etc. develop rapidly with the proper oceanic conditions and are massive in response. By the time managers were able to receive accurate abundance levels of any of the forage species and to effect timely management decisions, the course of several years would have taken place and the information would be useless for planning yearly or general fisheries management decisions.

Even if we were able to realize the scope and impossible task of assessing forage abundance, who is going to pay to do the massive data collection? California is facing a massive budget problem, as we all know. Public - private partnerships ??????? .........who wants any more of these given the eventual costs involved in payback, and what will the payback look like.

[Andy Eppink]

The state's bankrupt and the morons are dealing with this? And they get paid for donig so? What a gravy train. Man, who are the morons who vote for these guys? The land of the fruits, nuts and retards.

[ro]

Abolish the Right and we will have an environmental paradise

[Get Planted]

Politicians actually get a clue about how to protect our crucial ecosystems?

This is huge!