BILL ANALYSIS
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| SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER |
| Senator Fran Pavley, Chair |
| 2009-2010 Regular Session |
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BILL NO: SB 21 HEARING DATE: March 24, 2009
AUTHOR: Simitian URGENCY: No
VERSION: As Introduced CONSULTANT: Bill Craven
DUAL REFERRAL: No FISCAL: Yes
SUBJECT: Fishing gear.
BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
The Ocean Protection Council (OPC) consists of the Secretary of
Resources, the Secretary of Environmental Protection, the chair
of the State Lands Commission who alternates with the Lieutenant
Governor, and two public members. Among the OPC's
responsibilities outlined in Section 35615 of the Public
Resources Code, is to coordinate activities of state agencies
that are related to the protection and conservation of coastal
waters and the ocean ecosystem.
PROPOSED LAW
This bill would direct the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and
the OPC to take steps to prevent fishing gear loss and to
recover derelict fishing gear. Specifically, this bill would:
By January 1, 2011:
o Require DFG to include on all fishing licenses
a toll-free number and web address for the purposes of
reporting derelict fishing gear.
o Recommend to the OPC a sustainable funding
source for a program to help prevent the loss of
fishing equipment and for the recovery of derelict
fishing gear.
By July 1, 2012:
o Require DFG and the OPC to identify and create
a database of the location and type of derelict
fishing gear.
o Require lost fishing gear to be reported.
o Require that all traps and trawl nets deployed
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in state waters to be labeled with an identification
number for the owner.
By July 1, 2013:
o Require the OPC to prioritize the derelict
fishing gear that has been reported and
identified for removal and disposal to achieve
the target reductions for derelict fishing gear that
has established.
Allow DFG to accept funds to establish and implement a fishing
gear loss prevention and derelict fishing gear recovery
program.
Make various findings regarding the negative environmental
effects of derelict fishing gear.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
According to background submitted by the author, fishing nets
are usually made from synthetic fibers that take a long time to
degrade and in fact, may never degrade. For example, commercial
netting can take 30-40 years to decompose and monofilament
fishing line can take up to 600 years to decompose. The impacts
of derelict fishing gear include: the entanglement of divers and
swimmers, entangle and damage marine vessels, trap and kill
marine life, and threaten sensitive marine habitats and
ecosystems.
Numerous private and educational organizations have documented
and photographed the damage to the marine environment and
wildlife caused by derelict fishing gear. See, for example, this
site, http://www.seadocsociety.org/lostfishinggear , developed by
the SeaDoc Society affiliated with the Wildlife Health Center at
the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION
None received. As a sidelight, last year, the Department of
Fish and Game opposed a previous version of this bill, SB 899
(Simitian) that was ultimately vetoed by Governor
Schwarzenegger. Proponents believe that they can work with the
administration to convince them the costs of the bill are much
lower than suggested, among other issues. Those are issues for
subsequent committees and for discussions between the author and
the administration.
COMMENTS
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California Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project: In July 2005, the
SeaDoc Society at the University of California, Davis Wildlife
Health Center launched the California Lost Fishing Gear Recovery
Project. With a grant from the OPC and additional funding from
private and federal sources, this project has removed gear from
selected marine locations including the Channel Island and other
areas around California and other Pacific states. This project
also established fishing line recycling bins on public fishing
piers, and encouraged ocean users to report the presence of lost
gear. According to an OPC resolution, approximately 10 tons of
gear from the Channel Islands had been removed by the project
between May 2006 and February 2007. This project is on-going,
pending available funding.
OPC Resolution on Reducing and Preventing Marine Debris : On
February 8, 2007, the OPC adopted a resolution on reducing and
preventing marine debris. This resolution made a number of
findings regarding the negative impact that marine debris has on
the ocean ecosystem. In response, the OPC identified thirteen
top priority solutions. One of these solutions was for the OPC
to coordinate and chair a Marine Debris Steering Committee
(committee) consisting of the California Integrated Waste
Management Board, Department of Conservation, Department of
Toxic Substances Control, Coastal Commission, and the State
Water Resources Control Board. The resolution directed this
committee to propose a plan by December 1, 2007 for achieving
target reductions of derelict fishing by 2015.
The OPC released a draft Ocean Litter Implementation Strategy,
however this draft does not include any targets for derelict
fishing gear reductions.
Technical Amendment : The author has provided the Committee with
a minor technical amendment clarifying the statutory reference
to the Ocean Protection Council that will be adopted as an
author's amendment and will be in Legislative Counsel form at
the hearing.
SUPPORT
Heal the Bay
OPPOSITION
None received
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