March 20, 2026, Point Reyes Station, California — The California Department of Fish & Wildlife (Department) has released its long-awaited marine protected area (MPA) petition evaluations. The statewide MPA petition process allows the public to identify and suggest ways to adaptively manage our state’s renowned MPA network as new science, shifting needs, and climate change impacts emerge. The most current science regarding MPAs, including California’s Decadal Management Review, peer-reviewed research published in Science and other journals, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Green List evaluation, all document the ecological benefits of California’s MPAs.
EAC’s Statement on the Evaluations
The Environmental Action Committee of West Marin (EAC) thanks the Department for the undoubtedly long hours spent evaluating not just EAC’s petition, but over a dozen complex petitions submitted statewide for the adaptive management of our shared oceans.
Shockingly, the Department evaluation recommends denying virtually all petitions statewide. For EAC’s Duxbury Reef petition, the Department recommends denial of the request to redesignate the current State Marine Conservation Area (SMCA) to a State Marine Reserve (SMR). However, it recommends granting “in concept” the requested northern and southern boundary expansions, in a way that would not restrict existing commercial or recreational take allowances beyond intertidal protections.
While EAC acknowledges the Department for recognizing the ecological benefit of these expansions that would protect the full, contiguous reef habitat, this is one of the only actions recommended for adoption throughout the entire petition process, protecting less than 0.1% of additional waters statewide.
Ashley Eagle-Gibbs, EAC’s Executive Director, issues the following statement in response to the evaluations:
“The Department’s evaluation shows how important protecting the rare and ecologically-connected habitat adjacent to Duxbury Reef SMCA is by recommending expanded boundaries. As ‘the most extensive rocky intertidal habitat’ that exists in California, the Department’s evaluation acknowledges the real threats the reef faces from fragmented habitat on the local scale, to climate change on the global scale. This potential regulation change would better protect species by providing regulatory clarity and safeguarding contiguous habitat, enhancing intertidal health and the tidepooling and educational experiences for all who visit the reef.
Additionally, EAC remains committed to avoiding additional potential impacts to offshore commercial and recreational fishing uses and providing greater clarity for successful enforcement and improved public understanding. The informal amendment EAC submitted in November 2025, which was not included in the Department’s evaluation, would address these impacts. As the Department proposes various pathways, EAC looks forward to working with the Department, Commission, and community stakeholders to determine the best approach for the community, the ecosystem, and improved compliance, as well as how to best incorporate the amendment, if still necessary, to avoid unnecessary impacts.”
Unfortunately, the evaluation does not address visitor confusion around the SMCA’s partial take regulations, disregarding over a decade of MPA Watch community science data that shows high unpermitted take at this location, even in comparison to other rocky intertidal MPAs. With very limited enforcement at Duxbury Reef, evaluations cannot rely solely on Department enforcement data to provide a comprehensive view of the issue and guide decision-making. EAC does agree with the need for improved signage and continued education, which the organization will continue working on through its locally-based Duxbury Docents program.
As the evaluation clarifies, non-consumptive uses will not be impacted by this proposed change. The public can continue exploring, tidepooling, surfing, kayaking, walking their dogs, and engaging in research and education at this special place. In fact, Duxbury Reef SMCA is one of the premier sites for marine education in Marin County and is visited by people and students from all over the Bay Area and beyond.
EAC generally opposes the possibility that any potential SMCA boundary expansion or designation in the north and south includes “take” that is not currently allowed in the existing Duxbury Reef SMCA, which allows for the recreational take of finfish and abalone (though the fishery is closed through 2036), but prohibits injuring, damaging, taking, or possessing any other living, geological, or cultural marine resource, as this would contribute to regulatory confusion and open potential enforcement issues. Any new SMCA regulatory language should at least be consistent with the existing SMCA.
Background
In 2023, EAC submitted a petition to the Commission about its recommendation for a proposed regulation change at Duxbury Reef SMCA, an existing MPA. The original request, which would make the area a fully protected SMR, and extend the protected area’s boundaries north and south to fully encompass contiguous reef habitat, is based off over a decade of Marin MPA Watch community science data showing high visitation and unpermitted take at Duxbury Reef, as well as the observations of agencies, community scientists, educators, and long-time visitors showing a decline in species abundance. It is also based on the peer-reviewed science that fully protected reserves are most effective in preserving and restoring biodiversity and in gaining public understanding of regulations. If Duxbury Reef were to be reclassified to a reserve, its level of protection would go from moderate to highly protected.
In November 2025, EAC submitted an informal amendment after conducting additional community outreach, which would avoid potential impacts to both offshore commercial and recreational fishing and provide greater boundary clarity for the success of enforcement and public understanding.
There is documented confusion about the partial take allowance at Duxbury Reef SMCA: many visitors think all take is allowed when they see shorefishing, poke-pole fishing, or fisherpeople with buckets of bait, or when they read signage or information online that suggests some take is allowed. This phenomenon has been documented in other partial take MPAs, where take of finfish is allowed but take of invertebrates is not. At a recent Commission meeting, a Department law enforcement officer discussed how visitors see people with fishing poles at Arrow Point to Lion Head SMCA, and think it is okay to engage in other, unpermitted take, like harvesting invertebrates. This is exactly what has been documented at Duxbury Reef SMCA. An SMR would provide better regulatory clarity.
Additionally, strengthening the MPA network aligns with state goals: The Marine Life Protection Act, which established California’s world-renowned network of MPAs, also calls for the network to be adaptively managed to respond to changing conditions and new science. The Decadal Management Review process, including petitions from the public, was mandated by the legislature to adapt protections over time based on new information. Our world is dynamic; our conservation needs to be, too. It’s no secret that climate change is accelerating. Marine ecosystems will be hit hardest by climate-driven impacts: increasing rates of sea level rise, devastating marine heatwaves with cascading effects, biodiversity loss, decreased productivity, and more. 2027 may be Earth’s hottest year on record, and a new marine heatwave has already formed in the Pacific after six years of heat waves.
California, globally recognized for our conservation policy, has also set an ambitious yet critical goal of conserving 30 percent of state lands and coastal waters by 2030 (30x30). This is necessary to protect and restore biodiversity, expand access to nature, and mitigate and build resilience to climate change. 2030 is fast approaching, and California is only at 21.9% of coastal waters conserved. The MPA petition process is an opportunity to make real progress towards this goal, one that EAC’s petition would contribute to. Strengthening the MPA network is also identified as a goal in the California Ocean Protection Council (OPC)’s Strategic Plan. If all of the petitions to strengthen the network had been recommended, that would have only been a 2.1% increase. Unfortunately, since nearly all of the other petitions were recommended to be denied, California is not making much progress.
What’s Next? Evaluations are not Final Decisions
The release of the Department’s evaluation does not mean there will be a change at Duxbury Reef SMCA yet — or that any change made will be the same as the recommendation. The final decision makers, the Commission, are set to substantively begin discussing North Coast petitions at a meeting on April 21st in San Mateo. While the Department’s review was limited to the original petition request and did not take into account more recent amendments, Commissioners have discretion to make additional changes in light of new information. This is critical to a truly “adaptive” management process, including viewing the need for change through a climate resilience lens. Additionally, the OPC, whose mission is to protect California’s coast and ocean, plans to provide key policy input before April 21st in their capacity as drivers for the strategic direction of the MPA network and the alignment of collective MPA management work.
EAC will continue advocating to the Commission about the importance of providing increased regulatory protections at Duxbury Reef SMCA, and is eager to continue working with the Commission and the OPC to determine the best updated regulatory approach for this special place. A strong and healthy ocean is supported by Californians and benefits all. This small change gets us one step closer, but EAC is disappointed that a stronger approach was not taken by the Department to protect California’s coastal waters elsewhere. A final decision by the Commission may occur in June of this year.
Learn more about EAC’s work on Duxbury Reef.
