Promoting public awareness for the establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) in state and federal waters along the central California coast.

SOS participated with regional scientific, fishing, and environmental communities to seek consensus in the design and designation processes for MPAs mandated by the 1999 Marine Life Protection Act. To further citizen engagement, SOS launched our 2005 Stewardship Series,™ “Get on Board: A Citizen’s Role in the MLPA”, a sequence of public education forums designed to increase public participation in the MPA designation process that featured top experts in the fields of conservation, marine science and fishing.

SOS continued its membership on the Coalition of Organizations for Ocean Life and our support for the Marine Life Protection Act Initiative, an effort to implement a network of MPAs within state waters. Led by the California Resources Agency’s Blue Ribbon Task Force, SOS is participating in their efforts to make informed public policy recommendations and better enable the MLPA mandate. SOS contributed to the Initiative proceedings in 2005 by:

• Recommending a larger geographic boundary for the central coast’s pilot project area by considering use patterns, political and economic conditions, choices and options for multiple uses, as well as administrative factors;
  

• Supporting a stronger conservation contingency within the Central Coast Regional Stakeholder Group selection process, a team responsible for improving the design and management of the MPAs in state waters;

• Testifying on behalf of our work with the Fishermen’s Straight-Talks; and

• Producing outreach materials and speaking at public engagements as a member of the MLPA Speakers Bureau.

For MPAs in federal waters, SOS served on the Special Marine Protected Areas Working Group (SMPAWG) led by the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS). We worked throughout the year to clarify definitions and finalize conservation goals and objectives for implementing a network of ‘Special MPAs’ within the MBNMS as part of the Joint Management Plan Review process. SOS contributed to the SMPAWG by:

• Identifying conservation priorities including decision-making tools for establishing the most effective network of Special MPAs in federal waters;

• Identifying habitat priorities for MPA site selection; socio-economic analyses of MPA designation; and monitoring and enforcement recommendations;

• Preparing a draft statement of “Principles for MPA Site Selection and Design” derived from Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park;

• Assisting in developing outreach strategies to gain support for MPAs in the Sanctuary (federal waters); and

• Serving as the liaison to ensure compatibility of MPA designation in state and federal waters.

SOS co-sponsored a set of forums entitled Fishermen’s Straight-Talks designed to promote multi-perspective, informative, constructive dialogue on critical fisheries-related issues. Areas of ecosystem-based fisheries management and collaborative research opportunities between the marine science and fishing communities were evaluated. These
forums were well-received and well-attended, focusing on the socio-economic impacts of fishery regulations including MPAs. In addition, SOS led the Straight-Talks Steering Committee and continued to promote Straight-Talks and other conservation programs that support the fishing community (e.g., attendance at the Fishermen’s Swap in San Francisco).