January
2003
Surfers
Point Managed Retreat EIR Public Meeting January 16
Stop
Escalera Nautica
Tide
Calendar
Bush
administration plans to unravel the Clean Water Act
Surfers
Point Managed Retreat EIR Public Meeting January 16
To all Ventura County
Surfriders and concerned citizens:
First of all, let me
wish you all a Happy New Year!
January 2003 is a busy
month for Surfrider and our local coast. We will once again need
to show our unified support for the Surfers Point Managed Retreat
project by attending 2 public meetings:
Surfers Point EIR
- Public Meeting: Thursday, January 16th, at City Hall from 7:00
- 9:00 pm
Fair Board Meeting:
Tuesday, January 21st 10 am
The latest Draft of the
environmental report (EIR) is now available at the City Hall Planning
Department and city libraries. The public comment period for the
draft environmental impact report began on December 19th and will
end on February 2nd 2003.
First the good news:
following last years public meeting, the Surfrider
Alternative" was added to the EIR, and has now become the working
group's "Preferred Alternative". This alternative removes
all artificial fill, restores the dunes, and uses cobble buried
in the backshore rather than a concrete seawall. Thanks to everyone
who turned out last year to voice your support!
However, the EIR now
also includes a "no retreat" alternative, which would
re-construct the bike path where it is and dump cobble on the beach
to protect it as needed. The EIR states there is no impact to this
approach, and this is the cheapest option. It is also the option
preferred by the fairgrounds.
The new Fair Board will
be "re-visiting" this project at their meeting on Jan
21st. In 1999, following 7 years of negotiation between the City
and other State agencies, the prior Fair Board provided written
endorsement of the Managed Retreat concept. Their endorsement allowed
over $0.5 Million to be spent to develop this project. However,
the new Fair Board members have expressed a desire to rebuild the
bike path and parking lot without the retreat. A strong public voice
at this meeting will be needed to show the Fair Board that Managed
Retreat is the only sensible long-term solution to the problem.
Please try to make the
time to attend these meetings and voice your concerns and support
for the managed retreat project. Let me know if you can help spread
the word.
More information will
follow soon. Also see www.surferspoint.org
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Stop
Escalera Nautica
Take action today and
help put a stop to FONATUR's current plans to develop marinas on
some of Mexico's most fragile coastline along the Baja California
peninsula.
While the region is in
clear need of economic development, the Escalera Nautica Project,
in its current state, will clearly do the region more harm than
good, both environmentally and economically. I urge you to halt
development plans at the following sites: Bahia de los Angeles,
Cabo Colonett, Puerto Canoas, San Luis Gonzaga, Santa Rosaliita,
Bahia Tortugas, Punta Abreojos, San Juanico, Puerto San Carlos,
and Puerto Loreto. These areas stand out among the proposed sites
as particularly fragile in both environmental and socio-economic
terms.
You can take action on
this alert either via email (please see directions below) or via
the web at: http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/escalera/i65ndb4f783n68
Help preserve the Baja
California peninsula, visit the web address below to tell your friends
about this. http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/escalera/forward/i65ndb4f783n68
We encourage you to
take action by January 1, 2004
Stop Escalera Nautica
INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND
VIA THE WEB:
If you have access to a web browser, you can take action on this
alert by going to the following URL:
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/escalera/i65ndb4f783n68
INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND
VIA EMAIL:
Just choose the "reply to sender" option on your email
program.
Your letter will be addressed
and sent to:
Presidente Vicente Fox
----THIS LETTER WILL
BE SENT IN YOUR NAME----
Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],
I urge you to put a stop
to FONATUR's current plans to develop marinas on some of Mexico's
most fragile coastline along the Baja California peninsula. While
the region is in clear need of economic development, the Escalera
Nautica Project, in its current state, will clearly do the region
more harm than good, both environmentally and economically. I urge
you to halt development plans at the following sites: Bahia de los
Angeles, Cabo Colonett, Puerto Canoas, San Luis Gonzaga, Santa Rosaliita,
Bahia Tortugas, Punta Abreojos, San Juanico, Puerto San Carlos,
and Puerto Loreto. These areas stand out among the proposed sites
as particularly fragile in both environmental and socio-economic
terms.
Of the sites listed above,
four fall under the protected area of Valle de los Cirios, and two
are inside the El Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve.
Current development plans in these sites clearly do not address
the needs and realities of the local populations, who have been
inadequately informed and consulted regarding the proposed project.
Current plans do not
address the inability of government institutions to enforce environmental
regulations.
FONATURA's plans are
based on powerpoint presentations, lacking any basis in market survey.
The economic failure
of the project due to faulty projections and poor planning will
leave the land permanently scarred, and devoid of one of its primary
economic resources, its natural beauty.
----END OF LETTER TO
BE SENT----
Sincerely,
Paul Jenkin
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Tide
Calendar
Tide Calendar with great
photos and daily tide graphs, sun and moon rise & set, and more
$10
Sweatshirts with Surfrider
logo - $35
Now available at:
Real Cheap Sports http://www.mountainoutlet.com/pages/rcs.html
36 West Santa Clara St.
Ventura, Ca 93001
805.648-3803
Hours: Mon.-Sat. 10-6, Sun. 10-5
All proceeds go to Surfrider
Ventura - THANK YOU RCS for supporting our local chapter!
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Bush
administration plans to unravel the Clean Water Act
Folks - I'm forwarding
this announcement from American Rivers regarding Bush administration
plans to unravel the Clean Water Act, with specific impacts to Southern
California: " to exclude intermittent and phemeral streams,
small tributaries, and wetlands adjacent to those waters from coverage
under the Clean Water Act." Many of our waterways are "intermittent",
which would open them up for polluters with no legal recourse...
read on...
The Bush Administration is putting polluters first and it is time
for the river movement to respond. The Administration has targeted
changes to a number of rules and policies that would unravel protections
that our rivers, streams and wetlands currently receive under the
Clean Water Act. Among the most egregious moves is an anticipated
change in the definition of waters that qualify for protection under
the Clean Water Act. The river movement must counter these attacks
on clean water with a unified and nationwide response. American
Rivers is committed to helping lead this charge and helping local,
state, and regional conservationists fight to protect the rivers
and streams you care about.
What's Being Proposed - limiting the waters protected by the Clean
Water Act
Since its passage thirty
years ago, the Clean Water Act has granted protections to all waters
of the United States. But now the Administration will propose new
regulations that could strip Clean Water Act protections from many
streams and wetlands across the nation.
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced
their plan to proceed with this rulemaking at a Congressional hearing
on September 19. At that hearing, the Corps and EPA signaled their
intent to exclude intermittent and ephemeral streams, small tributaries,
and wetlands adjacent to those waters from coverage under the Clean
Water Act. If we allow the Administration to move forward with this
plan, more than 60 percent of all the nation's river miles and wetlands
adjacent to those waters could lose all protection under the Clean
Water Act. This would strip away all federal controls on the discharge
of sewage, toxic waste, oil, industrial pollutants, and factory
farm waste into those waters. It would also allow the filling of
those streams and wetlands for any purpose.
The Administration claims
the proposed changes are necessary to respond to the January 2001
Supreme Court decision on wetlands, Solid Waste Agency of Northern
Cook County v. Army Corps of Engineers (SWANCC). But that decision
struck down only a policy that allowed the Corps to exert jurisdiction
over isolated water bodies based solely on that water's use by migratory
birds. As the Administration's own Department of Justice has argued
in nearly two dozen court cases, the SWANCC decision does not mandate
a more extensive change in the coverage of Clean Water Act jurisdiction.
The Administration is
expected to release its notice of this new rulemaking through an
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in late December or early
January. While we won't know exactly what they are proposing until
we see the formal notice, all signals point to a proposal that will
be very damaging to rivers and human health.
What You Can Do
It is critical that the
river movement defend the Clean Water Act with a swift and strong
response from as large a constituency as we can generate. Please
join the campaign against Clean Water Act rollbacks by taking steps
now and being prepared to act quickly when the Administration formally
announces its proposal.
Here is what you can
do NOW:
1. Talk to the media
now and prepare for future opportunities - Start talking to your
media contacts to give them a heads-up that we expect the Administration
to announce an effort to reduce the reach of the Clean Water Act.
Let them know that you will be examining the proposal once it is
released and would like to help them explore what it means for the
local community. In the meantime, give some thought to small streams,
creeks, and wetlands areas that are likely to lose their Clean Water
Act protection and be prepared to take reporters there once the
proposal is released. Be prepared to tell stories about creeks where
discharges would harm human health and drinking water if this proposal
is implemented. Examples that illustrate the arbitrariness of protecting
some waters but not others are particularly valuable: such as a
riverfront industrial facility that would require a Clean Water
Act permit to discharge into a river - but not into a small creek
running through its property.
Following the formal
announcement of the Administration's proposal, American Rivers will
be providing talking points for use with the media.
2. Contact your Congressional
representatives - While the Administration will attempt its rollback
without obtaining Congressional approval, there is much that Congress
can do to discourage the Administration and/or respond to its rulemaking
proposal. You can help by telling your members of Congress how concerned
your group and its members are. Demand that they reaffirm the authority
to protect all our waters, including by sponsoring or voting for
the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act (S 2780 / HR 5194 in the
last Congress). We expect that this bill will be re-introduced in
the new Congress by Congressmen John Dingell (D-MI) and James Oberstar
(D-MN), and Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI).
3. Contact local officials
- Encourage your local officials to weigh in with your state's governor
and Congressional delegation. Point out that by giving polluters
and developers free rein, states and localities will have to pay
the tab for the toxic clean-ups, drinking water contamination, flooding,
and declining recreation value of their streams and wetlands.
4. Inform your members
and activists - This proposal has potential impacts on streams and
wetlands in all of our communities. We must get the word out to
the members and activists who support our work and care about the
health of aquatic resources in their communities. Encourage them
to communicate with decision-makers at the local, state and federal
levels.
5. Share your stories
-We encourage you to tell us how a local river or stream you care
about would be affected if this proposal is implemented. We are
also seeking permission to use those stories as we compile materials
to share with other river conservationists, the public, the media,
and members of Congress. You can share your stories by emailing
them to msicchio@americanrivers.org or faxing them to 202-347-9240,
Attn: Matt Sicchio.
6. Stay connected and
be prepared to act - American Rivers is tracking this proposal carefully.
We will share news of any developments as soon as we hear of them,
through email, web postings, and phone calls. We will also be creating
fact sheets and talking points to assist the grassroots river community
in getting the word out to decision-makers and the media. Please
be on the lookout for these updates, action alerts, and resources
and let us know if there is anything else we can do to support your
participation in this fight.
For More Information,
Contact:
American Rivers
1025 Vermont Ave., NW Suite 720
Washington, DC 20005
T: 202-347-7550
F: 202-347-9240
www.americanrivers.org
Betsy Otto, Senior Director,
Watersheds Program (botto@americanrivers.org)
Melissa Samet, Senior Director, Water Resources Program (msamet@americanrivers.org)
Matt Sicchio, Director of Outreach (msicchio@americanrivers.org)