We prepared and submitted two petitions to the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) on November 30th to request changes in Marine Protected Area (MPA) regulations at two highly vulnerable locations in Marin County: Drakes Estero and Duxbury Reef. We also supplemented our comments on February 1st with additional community support and information. This follows the decadal management review and the need to adaptively manage our MPAs.

Following up on our involvement in the first decadal management review for California’s network of 124 marine protected areas (MPAs), we prepared and submitted two petitions in November to the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) to request changes in MPA regulations at two locations in Marin County: Drakes Estero and Duxbury Reef. Initially, we submitted comments in March of 2023 and subsequent comments, requesting the Commission review changes to the current regulations based on changed circumstances and to ensure MPA resilience and adaptive management. We followed up with formal petitions in November, including submitting extensive agency, partner, and local support, as well as other relevant information. 

The aquaculture public interest criteria (or guidance) were finalized at the August Fish and Game Commission (Commission) meeting. The criteria outline a series of inquiries and clarify the process for prospective aquaculture proposals (including shellfish growing in Tomales Bay and California waters). These unanimously adopted criteria will apply statewide with broad support at the meeting. Alongside the criteria, an enhanced application review process was also adopted. 

We have been leading the NGO effort to increase transparency and develop and refine these aquaculture criteria for the last couple of years. Thank you to our partners for their support in getting this across the finish line! The successful adoption of these criteria results from extensive public comments (written and presented), as well as coordination with staff, Commissioners, and NGO partners.

The 8th annual State of Tomales Bay conference took place at the end of September at the Inverness Yacht Club. The day was thoughtfully curated and facilitated by the Tomales Bay Foundation Board, bringing together regional partners, including non-profit and business stakeholders, scientific practitioners, local, state and federal land managers, as well as elected leaders who actively collaborated to address the topic of the day: Conservation Challenges with a Changing Climate. Three members of the EAC team, as well as Board members, joined the important event. 

The interdisciplinary nature of the conference presentations gave each attendee access to information that educated about the importance of prescribed fires, Tomales Bay aquatic biology, hydrology, birds and butterflies, as well as introduced participants to Marin County’s coordinated response to sea level rise, student research focused on biodiversity, benthic habitat, biological invasions, restoration success stories, and predation on marine mammals.

An important topic at the California Fish and Game Commission's July Marine Resources Committee meeting was Aquaculture Leasing in California (Item 4) and specifically, the development of public interest criteria to help guide the Fish and Game Commission and the Fish and Wildlife Department in their new leasing decisions, so that the Commission can ensure newly sited leases take into account important considerations such as impacts to our sensitive coastal environment, eelgrass habitat, recreation, and navigation. We have been engaged in the development of these criteria for the last couple of years, and we are excited that the criteria are close to being finalized. Draft 3 will be released shortly and reviewed at the August Fish and Game Commission meeting next week.  

The EAC team including our stellar summer interns participated at the California Fish and Game Commission's Marine Resources Committee meeting in-person in Petaluma in July to advocate for our Marine Protected Areas (or MPAs). 

We spoke on a few agenda items including Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Decadal Management Review (Item 5), which is the focus of this article. 

Before we dive into the meeting debrief, we wanted to share a little bit about California’s network of MPAs and how they were created. 

Our advocacy to protect Tomales Bay’s unique habitats and species from poorly sited development continues, as we push the California Fish and Game Commission (FGC) to create statewide aquaculture public interest criteria, which will be implemented prior to the issuance of new aquaculture leases. 

We need your help to ensure the FGC understands this issue is important to our membership.  Please Complete this Google Form by adding your name and feedback, so we can emphasize the importance of this issue at the FGC Marine Resources Meeting on July 20th. We also encourage you to send in your own written comments separately by July 7th at 5 PM. See more info. below re. submitting individual comments.

It’s been 10 years since California’s network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) were established. California’s ambitious plan to establish an interconnected network of 124 MPAs along the coast is an international example of adaptive conservation and management, and we are proud to have been part of the process from the very beginning stages of community meetings. Here in Marin County, we are fortunate to have six MPAs, two State Marine Parks, and three Special Closures at some of our favorite coastal areas like Drakes Estero, Drakes Beach, and Duxbury Reef.

In 1999, California passed the California Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) requiring the state to create an interconnected ecological network of 124 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to protect and sustain the diverse marine life and coastal and ocean habitats through adaptive ecological management strategies. A key part of the adaptive management plan included the development of four-pillars that would guide the implementation of the MLPA to ensure the MPA network was meeting its goals.

At the end of the year, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) released the first ever review of the MPA network in their report, California Marine Protected Area Decadal Management Review. The report reviews the last 10-years of research and monitoring; outreach and education; policy and permitting; and enforcement and compliance activities. It also provides the public with information and recommendations for the future to address knowledge gaps and changing environmental and socioeconomic conditions.  

The Fish and Game Commission is in the process of developing criteria for when a new aquaculture lease is or is not found to be in the public interest, which is required under state law. Public interest criteria will be applied when new lease applications are submitted — like the proposed lease by San Andreas Shellfish near the mouth of Tomales Bay. In 2022, EAC participated in a number of public meetings on this topic, attended workshops, coordinated with partners and agency staff, and reviewed and commented on two rounds of draft criteria. 

EAC has been actively following the development of the statewide aquaculture action plan, advocating for a strong plan consistent with the Ocean Protection Council’s strategic plan that explicitly identifies and addresses marine aquaculture impacts. We participated in a working group on this topic, we have spoken at agency meetings, and we meet with OPC staff. In December 2022, we submitted a detailed comment letter with 9 partners, providing feedback on the finalized statewide Guiding Principles for Sustainable Marine Aquaculture and feedback on the forthcoming aquaculture action plan. Our letter also included our collective opposition to marine finfish.

To ensure the Bay remains healthy and thriving, we advocate to protect wildlife and sensitive habitats from harmful industrial, commercial, and excessive recreational development activities.

We fight for consistent management strategies, enforcement, and strong permit conditions; and we engage with state resource management agencies to improve oversight, compliance, and planning guidance.

We work to protect coastal resources, like eelgrass (Zostera marina), species of special concern, endangered and native species, marine mammals, and shore and waterbirds in Tomales Bay and beyond.

2022 was a busy year for our Healthy Tomales Bay campaign!