WILDCOAST’s Floating Laboratories are Helping to Conserve our Marine Protected Areas

August 5, 2016 by Leave a Comment

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This summer and fall, WILDCOAST is carrying out an exciting project to engage San Diego County students in the conservation of the region’s marine protected areas, or MPAs. Through our Floating Laboratory project, students from the Sycuan Teen Center, La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians, San Ysidro Girl Scout Troop 5912 and Imperial Beach Junior Lifeguards are conducting real scientific research on the water to help guide MPA management decisions and enhance their ability to protect coastal and marine resources.

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Press Release: Speaker Atkins releases bill requiring lobbying transparency at Coastal Commission

February 16, 2016 by Leave a Comment
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For immediate release

February 17, 2016

CONTACT:
Serge Dedina, WiLDCOAST, serge@wildcoast.net, 619.606.0537
Susan Jordon, California Coastal Protection Network, sjordan@coastaladvocates.com, 805-637-3037

Speaker Atkins releases bill requiring lobbying transparency at Coastal Commission

Sacramento, CA – In the wake of the controversial vote to oust Executive Director Charles Lester last week, Speaker Toni Atkins has released a bill designed to increase transparency and accountability at the California Coastal Commission and reduce the influence of special interests.  The Commission reviews projects worth billions of dollars.  Yet, for decades, lobbyists have been able to woo Commissioners without the public’s knowledge of how much these lobbyists are paid or by whom.  The bill is co-sponsored by Assemblymembers Stone and Levine.

Atkins was clearly troubled by the Commission’s decision to terminate Dr. Lester, who was widely regarded as a fair and competent public servant. Following hours of public testimony at the February 10 hearing, the Commission chose to retire to closed session, despite the advice of legal counsel that they could deliberate in public. Following the 7-5 vote to fire Lester, Atkins tweeted, “Let me apologize to the public. I truly thought my appointees would be better stewards of the coast.”

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Keep California’s Coastline… California!

February 5, 2016 by Leave a Comment

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I am riding north along the blessed California coastline on an Amtrak train bound for SLO. The bustle is happily out of reach as we whiz by crammed intersections and the afternoon I-5 slog. Open space fills the absence of noise. There is no better way to experience the continuity of the California coastline than on the train. You get to see the glittering line-ups of Church and Trestles; retirees calmly sliding along weekday peelers. You can stare out the window at emerald wetlands and flocks of gulls on the exposed cobbles of an afternoon low tide.

California’s coastal zone governance via the Coastal Commission has largely enabled this opportunity. It is a shame they weren’t around before 1972. I day dream of a Solana Beach without the country’s most armored cliff-line…and a Dana Point with one of the state’s best point breaks. I didn’t get to experience those things and time travel does not exist yet without reconfiguring my anatomic structure so I must accept the baseline that is. Fortunately that includes still a darn nice place to live and surf.

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San Diego County MPA Interpretive Signs Installed!

August 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
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Congratulations to the City of Encinitas and the Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation for the first installment of MPA interpretive panels in San Diego County! These incredible signs highlight the ecological significance, natural beauty and history of Swami’s and Batiquitos Lagoon MPAs.
Special thanks to everyone involved in the process! City of Encinitas, Surfrider Foundation, California State Parks, Marine Sanctuary Foundation, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation, and our staff at WILDCOAST!
We can’t wait to see the rest of the signs installed across San Diego County!

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Silicon Valley Billionaire Battles Surfers Over Beach Access

February 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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Martins Beach, three miles south of Half Moon Bay, was once a hidden gem of the San Mateo County coastline, known to just a handful of local surfers and people who rented cottages along the shore.

Those days are over. The small beach has become ground zero for a protracted legal battle between locals and one Silicon Valley billionaire who would like to keep the public out.

For more on the story click here.

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Coast Advocates Urge Coastal Commission to Help “Lift the Fog” on Ocean Fracking

February 7, 2014 by 2 Comments

*Humpback Whale- Megaptera novaeangliae (Balaenopteridae)Coast Advocates Urge Coastal Commission to Help “Lift the Fog” on Ocean Fracking

Undisclosed fracking and “frac packs,” that have been used in waters offshore California will be the focus of a morning hearing before the California Coastal Commission (CCC) on Wed., Feb 12, 2014 in Pismo Beach. Click the above highlighted link to read more.

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