Marine Protected Areas: Investing in the Health
and Productivity of California's Marine Resources
In 2004 the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Marisla Foundation created a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve ocean ecosystems by providing funds to implement California's Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) through the MLPA Initiative. Using these funds, Resources Legacy Fund Foundation (RLFF) designed the Marine Protected Areas program to assist in the implementation of the MLPA and the creation of marine protected areas (MPAs) by the State of California.
Oceans at Risk. A host of human activities, including unsustainable fishing practices and land-based pollution, are seriously harming the health and resilience of California’s marine and nearshore ecosystems. This degradation was recognized as part of a national crisis in ocean management by the United States Commission on Ocean Policy and the Pew Oceans Commission in reports issued in 2004 and 2003, respectively. Growth in the number of fishing vessels and the increased effectiveness of their technology have transformed commercial and recreational fishing and magnified their impacts on wild fish populations. In response to dramatic declines in key fisheries and wildlife, as well as habitat loss due to destructive practices, the California Legislature in 1999 adopted the Marine Life Protection Act.
Recognizing the importance of MPAs in preserving and restoring marine ecosystems, the MLPA directs the state to systematically create a statewide network of MPAs to restore marine habitats and the diversity of marine wildlife, improve scientific understanding of marine resources in an undisturbed setting, and preserve California’s rich marine natural heritage. However, for five years after passage, the state was unable to implement this groundbreaking law.
Structure of the Initiative. The MLPA Initiative is memorialized in a Memorandum of Understanding among the Resources Legacy Fund Foundation, the California Resources Agency, and the California Department of Fish and Game and supports the scientifically-based design and implementation of a network of MPAs for California's ocean habitats.
The cooperative approach to MLPA implementation developed by RLFF and the State of California includes a Blue Ribbon Task Force of distinguished citizens to guide the design process, a science advisory team to develop guidelines and evaluate alternative MPA packages, a group of stakeholders for each region to provide recommendations to the Blue Ribbon Task Force, and a core professional staff. Financial support provided through the RLFF has been essential to this effort and has also supported complementary research, particularly in the area of MPA monitoring.
Achievements. Key results have been the design and adoption by the California Fish and Game Commission of a policy framework for a statewide MPA network and the approval by the Commission in Spring 2007 of a scientifically sound set of MPAs for the Central Coast between Pigeon Point in southern San Mateo County and Point Conception in Santa Barbara County. The MPAs designate 18 percent, or approximately 200 square miles, of coastal waters as fully protected or limited-use zones.
Continuing Commitments to Ocean Conservation. RLFF entered into a new Memorandum of Understanding with the California Resources Agency and California Department of Fish and Game for the design and designation by January of 2009 of a network of MPAs for the coast between Alder Creek near Point Arena in Mendocino County and Pigeon Point. In addition, we are committed to providing funding and technical assistance for the implementation of the Central Coast MPAs approved by the Fish and Game Commission in 2007. We are confident that this unique collaboration will continue to yield significant marine conservation benefits to present and future generations of Californians.
Photograph by Tupper Ansel Blake
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