MLPA Letter writing campaign!!
 

If you like Fishing SOCAL, please read every word, I tried to be as concise as possible.

I know that the meetings are held during unfriendly times of the day, usually during business hours, so it is difficult to attend.

Many of us have asked how we can help?

Well, this is how... by writing letters, remember the squeaky wheel gets the oil... No this is not a cure-all, it is flank maneuver to the people working hard to preserve our access to our fisheries.

We cannot say we are writing on behalf of any kayak fishing organizations, or our stakeholders, as they must remain impartial, but more likely as concerned citizens, and kayak fisherman.

IF YOU DON'T THINK THE FRINGE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS ARE NOT SENDING LETTERS, sorry for yelling, then you are mistaken.

A couple notes... Handwritten letters are all personally read. Personally written typed letters are also read. Form letters are often put in a pile but they are weighed to see how much each group cares.

So, to whom to we write our letters.

Re: MLPA map and MLPA process for South Coast Region 2009

Note: Letters without your address on it will be ignored. You need to put your address in the following format:

John Doe
123 Springtime Lane
Sunny City, CA 91234

To: XXXXXX

I have attached a PFD: with sample letters.

These letters are due by 4-11-09, to be considered by the BRTF (blue ribbon task force).

The speardive community has rallied and sent lots of letters. I am asking that you at least send 1 letter to:

Marine Life Protection Act Initiative
c/o California Resources Agency
1416 Ninth St., Ste. 1311
Sacramento, CA 95814

If you really, really, really care... I have attached a cheat sheet of everyone who should get your concerns, and thoughts on this issue that WILL affect us all.

Post up, if you are sending letters, time to rally. This is not the appropriate place to vent on how things should be done.

If you have an idea for letters, etc, please post up.

I have sent my letters, are you going too? Feel free to to use work time, & printers...... :p

Thanks for reading, this thread will continually get bumped until we all do something, this MLPA is happening, it is up to us to voice our concerns to help shape it.

More info to come. Now is the time to act! :you_rock: I'll thow in a :arne1: for good measure.

Chris Fierro

Thanks for posting this up, Chris. I've already sent several letters, and will continue to send more until the deadline. I hope everyone else is doing the same!

letters sent!

ditto.. thanks chris.

I've sent a letter on behalf of every member of my family.

I suggest you do the same, Stamps are cheap.

Do Not put this off, if you would like to continue fishing without being labeled an Outlaw, get busy.

fwiw
i sent the letter
and signed the petitions at the Baytubers tournament
thanks Chris

handwritten letter sent today, Thanks for the info.

6 envelopes addressed and the letters are written, and signed. I'm going to have my boys draw yellowtail on the envelopes with crayon so they'll stand out a bit.

Thanks Chris. Nice concise instructions.

Thank you for providing names and adresses!!! I love writing campaigns for causes and so does my mom. I 've drafted a letter already, and will send handwritten letters to all persons named by Thursday. Joy Oshima

Thanks everyone, keep those letters coming! There are a lot of viewers on this site, and other sites I posted this on, you all should writing letters if, even you only soak the plastic once a year.

If you caught a WSB recently in the kelps in recent weeks, you owe the Fishing karma God, or if atheist, you owe the mathmatical probability that you caught that fish, to write a letter. If you are agnostic, and unsure, then let me make the decision, WRITE A LETTER, if only 1!!!! 11 days to go!! Enviros are writing plenty of letters with their position.

Don't make me call out names! Because it sure wasn't me doing the catching lately.... :p

BUMP! :lobster::sifone:

Thanx for the info Chris! I'll be sending a letter in the mornin.

done...hope it helps

Can I send in many letters addressed from only myself?

If you have wife or kids that wrote letters, they ought to get credit, and be addressed from them... :)


BUMP!

The wife and I will be dropping our letters in the mail tomorrow with more to follow!! Thanks for letting us know Chris!

letters
 

Here are some more thoughts to help with your letter writing....

IMPORTANT MLPA INFO CONCERNING YOUR FISHING FUTURE

The State is rushing to create multiple MPAs in Southern California which could include in excess of 20% of the State’s oceans. Supposedly this is to “protect” the ocean and all marine resources.

Anglers are as concerned as anyone that the ocean be conserved and fish populations protected. You know that “irresponsible” fishing can do damage, you also know that other human activities can also have serious impacts. The law says MPAs are supposed to be a balanced plan to protect the ocean, not just a “no-fishing” plan.

THE SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACT IS HUGE: Many Californians make their living on the sea and many more rely on the ocean for fishing recreation and these endeavors support a very large financial pyramid—lodging, boating, supplies, fuel, etc.

THE COST IS UNSUSTAINABLE AT THE CURRENT ESTIMATE OF 30-40 MILLION: The State is essentially bankrupt. The Department of Fish and Game admits is currently does not have the resources to manage the huge array of closures. The net effect is that honest fishermen will stay out of reserves, but poachers will not.

Anglers have good and dedicated representatives spending many hours in highly technical meetings doing their best to guard your interests. But your help is needed to resist the political momentum they are struggling against.

PLEASE WRITE to your State and local legislators and tell them that fair and balanced MPAs are needed.

A simple message is best and it will support lots of other work going on to improve this process. The goal is to educate locally elected officials to the inequity underway, officials that pay more attention to local voices than do the Governor and his troops.

Tips for writing letters:
Short and to the point –focus on 2 – 3 points, avoid long lecturing type letters.
Make it personal –include comments about yourself, work, and community activities.
Don’t blame the legislator for this situation; ask for his or her help.
Avoid confrontational type words, show respect even if that is hard to do.
Written letter is better than email and type your letter if at all possible.
Say thank you!
PLEASE BE A PART OF THIS EFFORT AND PRESERVE YOUR FISHING FUTURE!!!
Jim / Saba Slayer

Very good points Jim!

Especially:

.

It is important to remember we are asking and NEED their help.

Thanks again, keep on writing, just bought some more stamps, and envelopes last night, busted out the "wide ruled paper," college ruled paper hurts the old hands... :doh:

Remember Personally Typed Letters in your own words count also, it is the form letters (previously constructed letter with talking points, we cut n paste, and all send in) that are just weighed not read. So if you rather type, go for it!

chris

Just a quick question....

I know we're supposed to be giving our opinion about which areas are most important to us personally, but is there a consensus about which areas we feel have a higher priority than others?

Is there an "anything but La Jolla" approach - or something like that?

Thanks Chris, working on it right now.

Have you written your letter yet ? They are due by April 11th.
- Here's one of mine.

To: MLPA Comments,

I am alarmed at the prospect of loosing access to my fishing grounds because of the creation of State Marine Reserves.
My family and I have enjoyed a lifetime of fishing in our local waters and we now fear that our wholesome family activity will soon come to an end because of the rush to create these State Marine Reserves.

I can only hope that our voices are heard and our concerns will be addressed. The tax paying public should have a say as to what happens to the waters we use in our State.

Furthermore I do not see how a financially crippled state like California will be able to maintain and enforce these newly created marine reserves. The cost would be in the 10's of millions of dollars.

This process should be base on scientific evidence and not hurried into place. The large amount of private funding from environmental groups gives cause for concern. I believe these groups should not be allowed to buy their way into this process and feel it is corrupted by the acceptance of private money.

I ask that you make no change to the existing reserve located at La Jolla Shores, or block access to our fishing grounds unless there is good cause derived from scientific evidence.

Respectfully
Billy V

Good Job Billy V, short, and to the point.

Good question, our stakeholders are working within the MLPA process to save our fishing grounds. They must remain impartial publicly at this point, so that is why we must write as concerned citizens, and kayak fishermen, not for their lobby.

The ECOTRUST survey is where we had our opportunity to chime in which areas we personally feel are important, for example, Chris' spot to NW corner, :p.

These letters should implore our legislature, and decision makers to as why you want to keep la jolla open, or your area open, and for their help. This is important, because they are receiving letters as we speak, in opposition, to close all our favorite spots. We must counter, and match what they are doing.

I have attached a couple more sample letters, thanks to the permission of Joe Nguyen of spearboard. Obviously, use these as a reference to help formulate your letters.

thanks, chris

In addition to my personal letters, I just sent a copy of the 2nd form letter on your last attachment to each person on the list. Every little bit helps. Now I feel sorry for the trees, haha. My offering to Neptune and the ghosts of biscuits past.

Let me re-answer this... To be honest, yes, please write anything you feel will help. If you feel, certain parts of La Jolla are important to you, then write it. However, I am more inclined to write about keeping all of La Jolla open.

For the 2nd question, one of the spearo letters attached makes the case for closing Del Mar, in opposition to La Jolla... See my previous post with attached documents.

thanks again,

Chris

sent, Handwritten

Letters also sent by my family today. My wife even included a small pic of our family fishing from our kayaks to make the letter seem a little more personal. ;)(no pics of fish)


C'mon people...we need YOU to step up NOW!
Please get those letters mailed ASAP?
This is not a time to sit on your hands and hope for the best...PLEASE TAKE ACTION.

bump to the top.

These senators are the ones asking for MLPA initiative inquiry, ie, how is our State going to pay for it.

If you are rallied, if you have time, if you love fishing our inshore coast, if you are bored at work... I also attached a list of ALL our reps, etc.

Dean Florez
State Capitol
Room 313
Sacramento, CA
94248-0001

Dennis Hollingsworth
State Capitol
Room 305
Sacramento, CA 94248-0001

BUMP

I got a stack of letters I'm on way to post office with now...

the letter is on it's way to Sacramento!!

BUMP!

If you procrastinated last week... Here is your last chance this week to get those letters to the decision makers in this process. This is your voice!!

I am buying some more stamps today, thanks for everyone who is sending letters. Keep sending them! :you_rock:

chris

If he can write em, you can too! Please send em in.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d115/dbensen/eli.jpg

Thanks for the extra push Chris.

Done, 4 more letters mailed from the family.

My long attempt to sway rational into this issue
 

To:

MLPA Committee members, Advisory Groups, DFG, and Hon. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger ,

I am deeply concerned about the thought of closing areas to recreational fishing in Southern California. I am a strong proponent of conservation and a steward of California’s rich biodiversity. The only reason I love the ocean and the life that swims within is because my father would take me fishing as a kid. Both from shore or on sport boats I got to experience the diversity of many different species and also encounter a whale or dolphin every now and again. Fishing is one of life’s most inspirational and nature oriented activities.

In today’s society we need to be able to escape to nature from our busy caffeinated lives. Most of our open space in Southern California has been paved over with over development. It is a shame that I have to drive my children 30 miles away to look at wild flowers and maybe an occasional deer or coyote running about. By closing areas throughout the coast of Southern California you are creating missed opportunities for people to connect with nature. Our kids today already are bombarded with advertisements of ipods, cell phones, and play stations which are making our kids unhealthy and inactive.

Please do not institute closures on recreational fishing throughout our coast. Already, it is difficult enough to find access to expose my daughter to nature experiences which will also make her a steward of the environment. Fishing connects people to the environment and creates life long memories. Did you know that fishing is so important to youth that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an Executive Order proclamation in July of 2007 supporting the “Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights.” This bill includes 10 outdoor activities that all children should partake in before age 14. “Catch a fish” is one of the ten.

When reviewing the massive amounts of data and documentation that are contained in the South Coast study, I find it troubling to find what exactly you are intending to protect? What threatened and endangered species are identified? If there is a species that is threatened can we not take action by way of specie regulations? The Black Sea bass, (Stereolepis gigas) was almost extinct when DFG took proactive action to enact a no take policy. As an avid scuba diver and free diver I am constantly encountering Black Sea Bass while in the water where as 10 years ago they were rarely seen. This tells me that with species specific regulation you can ensure thriving populations of threatened and endangered species. On land we don’t close the forest to hunting deer because Big Horn Sheep numbers are low. This rational doesn’t make sense on land and surly doesn’t make sense in the ocean.

Generally, the public are law abiding when fishing our coastline. Fishermen respect limits and catch and release has been widely accepted and adopted. Fishermen have been instrumental in White Sea Bass Repopulation. Fishermen care about the fishery and are flexible in accepting change as long as they are still allowed fish. From my personal experience I only will take a fish if I am going to eat it within 2 days. I do not stockpile my freezer, and I release large fish because I know that they are dominate and successful in reproduction which promotes sustainability. I am very confident that if there are areas of concern of fish populations that the simple alteration of bag limits including slot limits can increase the sustainability of the fishery.

I strongly ask you to look at the affected individual species and make recommendations accordingly. If needed, change current take limits and impose slot limits to ensure that people are releasing proven reproductive fish. Closing areas of coast is really just an easy way to say you are protecting the resource. However, this is not resource management. This is a knee jerk reaction. You will lose your credibility as science experts and as a resource agency and many people will resist.

At Año Nuevo SNR State Natural Reserve why don’t we just deny the public access altogether? The reason we don’t is that we want the public to see and experience the Elephant Seals in nature so that they can appreciate them and will seek to protect them for generations to come. By closing the ocean altogether to fishing you will lose your stakeholders and appreciation for the species that swim within. You will also lose a substantial amount of revenue generated form fishing licenses needed to enforce the new MPA zones. People will not be buying fishing licenses to give them the ability to fish in muddy areas of non productivity.

If there are shoreline fishing closures or closures in areas where I can safely launch my kayak, or have to paddle miles to get to a non MPA “Desert zone” I will not buy a fishing license. I know I am not alone with this rational. Most of the MPA arrays target people that are shore fishing or kayak fishing. In today’s economy, most of the population cannot afford 50K+ vessels and offshore fishing. By making no take / no fishing zones you will be preventing the low and middle class from partaking in one of life’s fundamental recreational activities. The coastline in most arrays also fail to describe that much of the coastline is sealed off already. Multi-million dollar home communities, Camp Pendleton Coast and the geography features limits access. By having more limitations you cannot expect people to fish at all. The areas that are not listed in the arrays include non productive areas where fish are not generally abundant.

Is recreational fishing having a negative impact on our fishery? If you answer this question based upon science that includes impacts from all sources then it is fair to limit the activity. I have not seen this in any of the documentation though. For example, I have not seen in documentation about the proliferation of our California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus) and the CA Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulin). The mass overpopulation of these species is a main culprit of our alleged demise in our fishery take along our coastline. The problem in Oregon and Washington is so bad that State officials have been seeking to reverse the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). If the goal of establishing MPA’s is to preserve biodiversity then I would also seek to study the effects of the overpopulation these mammals have on the fisheries. Resource management of these overpopulated species can have a lasting impact as opposed to shutting down access to fishing from non-low impacting anglers. Nobody wants to touch this issue because of the thought of trepidation; however it simply is not a natural condition to have so many seals and sea lions along our coastline. Other factors affecting the fishery surveys could include climate change, pollution, and undocumented migration patterns. Do not punish recreational anglers if they are not the ones impacting the fishery.

In closing, I want to remind you that you have an extraordinary amount of power in your capacity. Most public members may not even know that this process is going on because they take for granted the notion that the CA. Coastline belongs to everyone. Most won’t get involved until closures actually happen which is a shame. Please make your decision based upon science. Make sure you know the cause and effect. Please give alternatives a chance instead of outright closures. Fish and Game regulations in the South Coast area has been relatively the same during the last 10 years. If there was a problem with recreational anglers why wasn’t there action then?

Remember your own outdoor experiences throughout your lifetime. What if someone was to take away something from you that you had a passion for but didn’t have a concrete reason? Do not punish recreational fisherman when recreational fisherman are not negatively impacting the fishery. Recreational fishing is much more selective than commercial fishing and the volume of take is much smaller. Recreational fishermen would be more than happy to reduce limits or abide to slot limits. Remember, recreational fishermen also want a balanced ecosystem so they can prosper in their fishing endeavors and make their children’s outdoor experiences more memorable.

I have had many great fishing experiences both with my father, friends, and individually along Southern California’s coast. Taking this away will leave me bitter and empty. Every since the birth of my daughter, I began to look forward to taking my daughter fishing in the ocean. When she comes of age what will I do if I can’t take her fishing because of new MPA non-take zones? How do I properly answer her if she asks me why we cannot fish in the ocean? Do I make her look up on the internet what fish live in the sea? What kind of world is this if I can add relevance to my daughter’s life and connect her with nature? What kind of future constituents will the environment have if our kids are told that they cannot experience the outdoors?

l
 

Letters sent today. Also got family in Nor-Cal to write letters.

Nice job guys/gals keep sending them in!!!

chris

Letters going out today.

Also, Sen. Moreno Ducheny from San Diego is part of the group looking into hearings on MLPA.

Should letters go to the So Cal Blue Ribbon members directly too?

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/brtf_bios_sc.asp

It's not to late guys Im sending in another one today
These letters are due by 4-11-09, to be considered by the BRTF (blue ribbon task force).

This bump inspired me to finish writing all the state senators.... Just so can see I am not posting the same pic each day, I took a pic in front of buttchasers recent post! :D

Even gonna mail my state taxes in for good measure. :rolleyes:

GET THOSE LETTERS OUT!!!!

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g2...misc/41009.jpg

Yeah Chris!

I just sent another half a dozen this morning. Do it people!! Come on!

Even the newbies that haven't had Josh show them how to fish La Jolla, come on!