On April 1st the adopted Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) areas in the North Central Region are scheduled to take effect. This follows the creation of protected areas in Central California in 2007. California abalone season also opens April 1st, and it is timely to consider the impact of this legislation on abalone hunting in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties where the vast majority of abalone are harvested.
Any legislation represents a comprise between opposing factions. Conservationists wanted more area protected, avid fishermen less. While many support the idea of protected areas, they do not want their favorites spots closed to fishing (the “not in my backyard” syndrome). Prior to this legislation there were a total of 10 protected areas in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties. However, only three of these (Point Cabrillo, Del Mar, and Gerstle Cove) actually restricted the taking of abalone and finfish, and represented only a tiny fraction of the divable coast.
The new legislation is a major game changer. Some 153 square miles of coastal waters within the North Central area (Alder Creek, near Pt. Arena in Mendocino County, to Pigeon Point in San Mateo County) will be protected in 21 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), comprising 20.1 percent of the North Central area. Officially, 86 square miles (11 percent) of this coast are within no take areas, but this is a bit misleading for divers, since abalone and finfish may only be taken in one State Marine Conservation Area (SMCR), and only finfish may the taken in the Sea Lion Cove (SMCR). A lot of the prime abalone hunting grounds have been taken from divers. Complete information and rules may be found at: www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/northcentralhome.asp.
What we kept: Focusing on the Sonoma/Mendocino area, not much diving is done south of the Russian River, so the MPAs south of there will impact few divers, except for the local divers who like to dive the Bodega area. All of the popular dive sites within State and County Parks and access through private campgrounds remain available to abalone hunters and spearfishers. Although the Salt Point SMCR is large, finfish and abalone may be harvested. This is distinct from the Gerstle Cove Reserve that remains under the same rules and no game may be taken.