Early Summer Waters Soupy
The unusually cold waters from this winter have held rich nutrients waiting for a warming trend. As the nutrient-rich waters warm, life explodes. While this is great news for the food chain, water clarity can suffer with green clouds of plankton reducing visibility considerably. Poorer than usual visibility is expected to last through early July, but the good news is this intense biological soup is expected to fuel a explosion of life well into the summer and fall. Look for massive schools of fish, orca and blue whale sightings and other unusual marine life encounters.
Divers are reporting encounters with large numbers of bat rays very close to shore along the Southern California coastline.
Reggie Woods and Steve West recently reported an encounter with an estimated 30 bat rays in one concentration at Diver's Cove in Laguna Beach. "The largest rays had wing spans of about five feet with whip-like tails that were about three feet long," they reported. Other encounters report dozens of "baby" bat rays in shallow sand flats near reefs and in coves.
Bat rays and leopard sharks (harmless) often move into shallow coves during the early to mid-summer. It can make for an exciting snorkeling experience.
On June 23 President Clinton signed an executive order that affected divers. The order creates a national system to preserve our coasts, reefs, underwater forests and other treasures. This order directs the Commerce and Interior Departments to work together to create a network of marine protected areas - encompassing pristine beaches, mysterious deep-water trenches, and every kind of marine habitat. NOAA was directed to develop a single framework to manage this national network wisely. No-take areas are expected to be implemented soon in Florida and the Channel Islands, and shortly thereafter in Monterey.
Fisheries
Recovery Act Need Your Input
The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the law governing federal management of marine fisheries, is currently up for reauthorization by Congress. Legislation introduced by Congressman Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD), the Fisheries Recovery Act of 2000 (H.R. 4046), is the first bill before Congress that will reauthorize and strengthen the Magnuson-Stevens Act. It would amend the Act by clarifying and strengthening the conservation provisions added by the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996. It addresses the need to avoid bycatch, eliminate over-harvesting, and protect essential fish habitat from damaging fishing practices. It adds language encouraging management precaution when scientific information is lacking or incomplete, and moves fisheries management toward ecosystem analysis and planning. H.R. 4046 supports the Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization agenda adopted by the Marine Fish Conservation Network.
For more information on this important bill, visit www.conservefish.org on the web and then forward your comments to your congressional representative or Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) at (202) 224-3554.
There have been reports of illegal commercial fishing activities off Palos Verdes involving "purse seine" and gill nets clearing out a large population of white sea bass. It was witnessed and videotaped by several individuals and the case is currently under investigation.
It is our ocean and it is our job to protect it. If you at any time feel you are witnessing an illegal fishing activity, do not hesitate to call the California Department of Fish and Game at 888-DFG-CALTIP.
Technical
Diving Instructor Burned in Flash Fire
On June 3 a technical diving instructor received severe burns from an explosion and subsequent fire while preparing a high percentage oxygen "decompression mix" tank. The first stage of the regulator exploded leading to a flash fire that ignited the diver's dry suit leading to third-degree burns over 10 percent of his body. "Decompression mix" is often used by technical divers during decompression stops and contains 75 to 80 percent oxygen. All equipment coming into contact with this high percentage oxygen gas must be free of contamination as explosions and rapid ignition fires can occur.
Ongoing improvements at Diver's Cove in Sand Harbor on Lake Tahoe will be affecting divers in positive ways. Volunteer divers are invited to participate. Recently completed is a fenced walkway providing easy, direct access to the water for divers without disturbing sunbathers. Responsible for the project was a Scuba Explorer Scout from the High Desert Divers dive club as an Eagle Scout project.
Coordinating with park staff, this same dive club will be installing a system of permanent underwater block and tag lines eliminating the need for the diving instructors that frequent the cove to dig in the sand to place their buoys. Enough blocks would be placed so as to serve several classes at one time at both the 20-and 30-foot deep levels. For navigation training, a 100-foot long line is also going to be installed.
Divers interested in participating in the project should visit the High Desert Divers dive club web site at www.divetahoe.com for more information.
Fees for California State Parks and Beaches will soon be lowered considerably and in some cases eliminated. Phase one, affecting museums and historic sites, begins this summer. Phase two will go into effect January of 2001 and will cut most entry and camping fees in half. Fees for small boats and dogs will be eliminated.
La
Niña is Fading
La Niña, the cold water area in the Pacific Ocean widely blamed for weather calamities such as last summer's drought and the colder than average waters divers experienced last summer, appears to be losing its strength, according to NASA researchers. Observations from spacecraft and readings from ocean buoys show that La Niña has disappeared entirely in the eastern Pacific Ocean and is rapidly vanishing from the rest of the Pacific. NOAA and NASA predict the cold-water event will fade out around August.
Check out www.mbayaq.org/efc/efc_oc/dngr_food_watch.asp. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has put together a list of what seafood should be eaten and what should be left in the sea. Pacific lingcod and rockfish are on the list to avoid due to overfishing.
Also check out: www.pixi.com/~mcjitsu//mizujitsu/mizujitsu.html. The page discuses an underwater defense class, martial arts for the diver. Maybe this will be the next Olympic event?
Admission to Point Lobos will drop to $3.50 per car beginning July
1. The $7 per team reservation fee for divers will remain the same.
Call: 831-624-841 or e-mail: "ptlobos@
bbay.net" for reservations. Reservations are accepted no sooner
than two months in advance.
The white abalone could be the first marine invertebrate to be listed under the Endangered Species Act. Following a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity, the National Marine Fisheries Service concluded that the marine snail is in danger of extinction throughout a significant portion of its range and may warrant federal protection. Before commercial fishing reduced its population, white abalone once numbered between 1 million and 4 million mollusks. Today, the population is estimated at 2,500, and most likely much less. White or Sorenson abalone is found only off Southern California and are rarely seen by divers not just because of their scarcity but also because they inhabit waters 100 feet or deeper. Both commercial and sport fishing of white abalone has been closed now for several years.
Public comments on the endangered species listing should be sent to the Assistant Regional Administrator, Protected Resources Division, NMFS, Southwest Region, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213. Comments may also be sent by fax to (562) 980-4027.
