This week, there will be a meeting in Sacramento related to implementation of the Marine Life Protection Act. A process to designate and delineate the “marine life reserves” called for in the Act is now underway, and the Department of Fish and Game is focusing first on the Central Coast Region, between Point Conception and Pigeon Point. I’ve put a lot of information about implementation of the Marine Life Protection Act on the KUSP website, at www.kusp.org. Just click on the Land Use Report link and track down the transcript for today’s Report.

The Land Use Report generally stays on the “dry side” of the marine/land interface. In this case though, land use policy advocates have a real reason to follow what’s happening with the MLPA. Here’s part of the definition of “marine life reserve,” right from state law:

"Marine life reserve" . . . means a marine protected area in which all extractive activities, including the taking of marine species, and . . . within the authority of the commission, other activities that upset the natural ecological functions of the area, are prohibited.

This language arguably means that land use activities that cause damaging effects within designated “marine life reserves” can be prohibited. Many land use activities do, in fact, cause damage to marine resources, and we now well know that if we want to protect marine resources, we need to practice responsible land use.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Marine Life Protection Act
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=fgc&group=02001-03000&file=2850-2863

The Department of Fish and Game Website on the MLPA
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/MRD/mlpa/

Save Our Shores is working on the MLPA. Visit the SOS Website at
http://www.saveourshores.org

SOS Winter 2005 Newsletter with article on the MLPA
http://www.saveourshores.org/PDFs/SOSWinter2006.pdf

Next meeting of the MLPA Blue Ribbon Task Force:
Thursday, May 25, 2006 (9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)
Resources Building Auditorium
1416 Ninth Street, First Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814

PCL’s annual Symposium was held this year in Sacramento on Saturday, April 29th. It was a terrific event, with about 300 persons in attendance. Participants heard inspiring speeches from Attorney General Bill Lockyer, congressional candidate Pete McCloskey, and gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides. Most important, the Symposium produced lots of useable information for California’s grassroots environmental and environmental justice advocates.

The final set of workshops focused on California’s different geographic regions, and as I have reflected on the Symposium, it has become clear to me that the way those regions were defined is actually quite important for our understanding of how best to protect and restore the California environment. Californians have tended to emphasize the “North-South” differentiation. At the PCL Symposium, though, we emphasized the “vertical,” not the “horizontal.” Instead of dealing with the state through the lens of “North” v. “South,” we thought of it as “the Coast,” “the Central Valley,” and “the Sierras,” with a fourth region, if you will, in what we called “Urban California.”

Most KUSP listeners are probably from the Central Coast Region. If you’d like to join a “mobilization network,” to work on California’s environmental problems in thisregion, or in the region you care about most, please contact me at PCL.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

The Planning and Conservation League Website
http://www.pcl.org

Contact Gary Patton at PCL – gapatton@pcl.org

Voters will be making some important investment decisions this November. You’ve probably been hearing about the “infrastructure bond” legislation that was recently enacted. In addition, an important “resources bond” measure, circulated as an initiative, is apparently going to qualify for the ballot. The upshot of the initiative effort, and the Legislature’s action, is that voters will decide “yes or no” on a series of different bond measures when they go to the polls on November 7th.

Approval of a bond measure means that the public will borrow the amount of money authorized in the bond measure, to spend on the kind of projects identified in the measure. The General Fund (which, of course, is already out of balance) will pay off the principle and interest. Generally speaking, bond monies cannot be used for ongoing operations; they’re supposed to be for capital assets of various kinds.

Here is a quick rundown of the legislative bond measures we’ll be voting on in November:

• Affordable housing: $2.8 billion
• Levee repair and flood control: $4 billion
• Educational facilities: $10.4 billion
• “Transportation”: $19.9 billion

The resources bond proposes an additional borrowing of $5.4 billion. The total borrowing proposed is upwards of forty-two billion dollars. I’ll say more about these proposed bond measures tomorrow.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Get a copy of the resources bond initiative at
http://www.caag.state.ca.us/initiatives/pdf/sa2005rf0131.pdf

Get copies of the legislation that comprises the Legislature’s “bond package” at
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/bilinfo.html

Here are the relevant bills:

• AB 140 – Levees
• AB 142 – Levees (non-bond funding)
• AB 127 – Education
• SB 1266 – Transportation
• SB 1689 – Housing
• AB 1467 – Public-Private Partnerships (“trailer” legislation)
• AB 1540 – Proposition 42 restrictions (“trailer” legislation)
• SCA 7 – Proposition 42 restrictions (proposed Constitutional Amendment for November vote)
• AB 1039 – CEQA Exemptions

Here’s a recap of the state bond measures we’ll be voting on in November:

• Affordable housing bond: $2.8 billion
• Levee repair and flood control bond: $4 billion
• Educational facilities bond: $10.4 billion
• “Transportation” bond: $19.9 billion
• Natural resources bond (from an initiative measure): $5.4 billion

The total proposed borrowing is more than forty-two billion dollars, and the key question for voters is whether the proposed investments are “good” investments (that will help strengthen our economy, protect and restore the environment, and advance our social equity objectives) or “bad” investments that will essentially “blow the money” on projects and activities that won’t really lead to long term improvements. Making a “bad” investment is particularly problematic at the present time, since our budget is structurally out of balance. The state generally spends more, each year, than it has income to cover, which means that we are using what amounts to a “state credit card” to pay our bills. The bond measures will definitely add to our ongoing expenses, and bond repayments get “first call” on the state’s revenues. A “bad” investment can mean reductions in basic services, including in education, law enforcement, and environmental protection. As we get closer to the election, I’ll provide more information.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Get a copy of the resources bond initiative at
http://www.caag.state.ca.us/initiatives/pdf/sa2005rf0131.pdf

Get copies of the legislation that comprises the Legislature’s “bond package” at
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/bilinfo.html

Here are the relevant bills:

• AB 140 – Levees
• AB 142 – Levees (non-bond funding)
• AB 127 – Education
• SB 1266 – Transportation
• SB 1689 – Housing
• AB 1467 – Public-Private Partnerships (“trailer” legislation)
• AB 1540 – Proposition 42 restrictions (“trailer” legislation)
• SCA 7 – Proposition 42 restrictions (proposed Constitutional Amendment for November vote)
• AB 1039 – CEQA Exemptions

Here are a couple of thoughts and ideas for those listeners who would like actually to get out in our natural environment. The Land Use Report is heavy with reminders about meetings and “policy” items, but in the end, our work on land use policy has the aim (among other things) of protecting and restoring our natural environment. Let’s celebrate what we are so privileged to enjoy!

On Sunday, June 3rd, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Val Haley is going to lead a hike in the Bonny Doon Ecological Reserve. The group will be meeting at the old firehouse on Martin Road at 11:00. This will be a two-mile excursion, not that physically demanding, and hikers will get to see a host of rare and beautiful plants. The Santa Cruz Sandhills support some of the rarest natural communities in the world, and Val has dedicated much of her life to their exploration and restoration. You do need to make a reservation for this excursion.

Here’s another idea, and YOU can be the leader. The National Wildlife Federation is sponsoring a “Great American Backyard Campout” on Saturday, June 24th. If that sounds a bit “hokey,” I think it is, too, but particularly if you’ve got kids, or want to re-experience what it used to be like to be a kid, check out the concept! The link is on the KUSP website.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

To reserve a spot on the hike into the Bonny Doon Ecological Reserve, call Val Haley at 831-425-0687

Find out about the Great American Campout at
http://www.nwf.org/campout

NWF Contact: Mary Burnette – Telephone: 703-438-6097; Email: burnette@nwf.org