Editor’s Note: This piece is written by guest contributor Charlotte Stevenson, Marine Biologist and Staff Scientist at Heal the Bay.

One fish, two fish, red fish….no fish? Where have all the fish gone? The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization recently warned of worldwide collapse of fish stocks within decades, reporting that fish stocks have been depleted in some cases up to 95%. This is especially true of the larger fish including tuna, marlin, swordfish, sharks, cod and halibut. Even here off the coast of California, where we have been better at fisheries management, we have several endangered species and many fisheries whose landings and value continue to decline every year. And with the release of the new Sundance Winning film, The Cove, exposing the Japanese slaughter of 20,000 dolphins every year, it seems that sea life is truly in peril.

Enough with the bad news, you say? I agree, and luckily, here in California, we’re ahead of the curve. California passed the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) which is the first state law in the nation requiring the formation of a network of science-based marine protected areas (MPAs). Similar to the movement over 100 years ago when the United States took steps to protect our most exceptional places on land by establishing national parks, such as Yellowstone and Yosemite, today California is doing the same for our oceans.

MPAs have been proven effective around the world. Nearly 50 countries and territories now use them as a tool to help replenish depleted fisheries and collapsing marine ecosystems, providing safe-havens for fish populations to remain abundant and healthy so they can produce more offspring and supply outside areas where fishing is allowed. Perhaps some of the most famous are in New Zealand, and there is a great National Geographic article about them and how the local community has come to love them.

We actually already tried MPAs in the Northern Channel Islands. They recently went through a rigorous scientific and economic review and, guess what? They’re already working. Inside the MPAs, kelp forests look healthier, fish are larger and more abundant, and some of the nearby fisheries have already started to improve.

So why should we care about our local marine life? Well, if you are seafood eater, you have your answer, but if not, you may be surprised to find out how many people work or visit our state’s coastal areas. California’s beaches and coastal waters draw millions of visitors each year, and California’s coastal economy, largely driven by tourism, is valued at $43 billion. These visitors, both locals and tourists, enjoy swimming, kayaking, scuba diving, fishing, wildlife viewing and many other activities that will benefit from MPAs.

Today California is taking a regional approach to place MPAs along the coast and has already established 53 MPAs in the central and north central coasts, while still leaving close to 90% of these regions open to fishing. During the past several months, a diverse group of local stakeholders-including fishermen, divers, conservationists, educators, scientists, and business owners–has been working together to design a south coast MPA network between Santa Barbara and the Mexican border. They have potential areas to protect and are now refining proposals that will be reviewed by science and policy experts.

However, the stakeholders, scientists and policy makers are soliciting the input of all southern Californians on the best locations for these MPAs so that they can protect the marine ecosystem while still minimizing economic impacts to fishermen. We have already seen hundreds of southern Californians coming out to meetings in support of MPAs along their favorite stretch of coast!

There are several big and important public meetings this fall at which the policy makers when it will be very important for southern Californian’s to show support for the creation of these MPAs.

If you are interested in learning more or coming out to show your support, feel free to contact us.