S. Calif. coast Vast protected area approved: SANTA BARBARA, Calif—State wildlife regulators have narrowly approved a proposal to create a zone of protected areas off the Southern California coast where fishing and other activities will be restricted or banned.
The Fish and Game Commission on Wednesday listened to hours of public comment over whether to create the marine protected area along a 250-mile arc of coastline from the Mexican border to Santa Barbara County. The panel voted 3-2 in favor.
Two such protected areas have already been created in Northern and Central California.
The establishment of such areas has been a particularly thorny issue in Southern California, where conservationists, fishermen and seaside business interests have collided.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) - State wildlife regulators are expected to make a final decision Wednesday on a controversial proposal to create a protected area off the Southern California coast where fishing would be banned or restricted.
The Fish and Game Commission is scheduled to debate the so-called Marine Protected Areas, which runs along a 250-mile arc of coastline from the Mexican border to Santa Barbara County.
The plan would create "a necklace of protected biological gems along the most populated stretch of California coast," said Karen Garrison, co-director of the Natural Resources Defense Council's oceans program in San Francisco.
To comply with the state's Marine Life Protection Act of 1999, the state's 1,100-mile coast was divided into five sections. Two protected areas have been created in Northern and Central California - Southern California is the third area to undergo the process.
The establishment of such areas has been a particularly thorny issue in Southern California, where conservationists, fishermen and seaside business interests have collided.
Even though the current proposal has been in the works for two years and aired out at dozens of public hearings, the process appears to have done little to quell opposition.
The fishing industry worries that key areas will become off-limits, and California Fisheries Coalition manager Vern Goehring predicts a lawsuit if the plan passes.
A new protected area would really only further regulate fishing - not protect the ocean from multiple threats, he said.
"The public image or message that proponents are giving is this is great thing protecting the ocean," Goehring said. "But in reality, most people know if you regulate fishing - which is already regulated - it doesn't do anything new about water quality, coastal development and other threats."
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