Marine protection act faces legal challenge
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Angler advocacy groups have sued the California Fish and Game Commission in an attempt to invalidate a sweeping marine protection plan, according to a report in the San Diego Union Tribune.
United Anglers of Southern California, the Coastside Fishing Club and San Diego fishing activist Robert Fletcher filed the lawsuit last week in San Diego Superior Court.
“We think that the process is flawed — they didn’t follow the regulations,” John Riordan, treasurer for United Anglers, told the paper. “It’s restricting access to recreational fishermen (and) ocean users.”
The Fish and Game Commission on Dec. 15 passed historic regulations for Southern California under the state’s Marine Life Protection Act. It voted 3-2 to adopt a plan that had been hashed out with help from dozens of marine experts over two years. The strategy incorporates about 350 square miles of state-controlled waters — or about 15 percent of the region’s total — into a reserve system, which bans or greatly limits harvesting of marine creatures.
Click here to read the full report: Marine protection act challenged in state court
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