Fans and businesses using so-called personal watercraft are defending them in hearings on the draft managment plan for national marine sanctuaries on the Central Coast, reports the Monterey Herald.

One of 28 action plans in the management plan includes changing the definition of "personal watercraft" to include not only one- and two-person waterjet-powered machines but larger, multipassenger watercraft, as well.

Personal watercraft users defended their pastime, saying the majority of users are considerate and responsible and that the machines are environmentally friendly.

Kelly Sorenson, owner of On the Beach Surf Shop in Pacific Grove and a volunteer with Pacific Grove Ocean Rescue, spoke for a number of people who told tales of being rescued or rescuing others with personal watercraft.

The plan will extend the limits on chumming for sharks, and regulate discharges from cruise ships and other vessels, prohibit introduction of non-native species, ban taking historic resources, and prohibit deserting vessels. It also proposes action plans for regulating seawalls desalination, harbors and dredge disposal, submerged cables, ecosystem protection, bottom trawling, integrated monitoring and marine protected areas.

The final hearings on the marine sanctuary management plan will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Fort Mason Center Firehouse in San Francisco, and Wednesday at the Community United Methodist Church, 777 Miramontes St., Half Moon Bay.

Coastsiders can subscribe to tsunami alerts by email at http://wcatwc.arh.noaa.gov/watcher/tsunamiwatcher.html .  Thanks to Dan Blick for posting this suggestion in the comments on the grand jury’s tsunami preparedness report.

Author Amy Meyer will give a talk illustrated with slides from her book, New Guardians for the Golden Gate:  How America Got a Great National Park at an evening gathering sponsored by the Committee for Green Foothills.  A social gathering starts off the evening in the San Benito House pub for refreshments followed by the slide lecture. 

Amy’s is a unique, insider’s account that tells how Bay Area activists forged bipartisan local and national support for an unprecedented campaign to create a great new national park. Beginning in 1970, the grassroots People for a Golden Gate National Recreation Area succeeded in preserving the spectacular land that frames the Golden Gate including over 30,000 acres in San Mateo County.  

Spanning more than 35 eventful years, Amy tells the story of how dedicated citizens, including visionary conservationist Edgar Wayburn, master politician Phillip Burton, and a battalion of lesser-known but key allies made our democratic system work for the common good and won their fight to save these dramatic and historic lands for all of the American people.  Amy will have books available for sale.
 
Where:  San Benito House, 356 Main Street, in downtown Half Moon Bay.

When:  Wednesday, November 29th, 2006, 6:30 to 9:00 pm.  From 6:30 to 7:30 there will be a social hour complete with refreshments, no-host bar, a silent auction of CGF artworks—perfect for your holiday giving.  At 7:30 the slide lecture will begin.
 
For more information:  (650) 968-7243 or [email protected] or on the web at www.greenfoothills.org.  Admission is free.  RSVPs are requested, but not required.

San Mateo County has approved a disaster alert system that will call all residents with instructions in the event of a tidal wave, earthquake or other disaster, reports Kelly Pakula in the County Times.

The county also will purchase six sirens, which will sound a warning in case of an impending disaster. [Sheriff’s Lt. John] Quinlan said two sirens will be in Pacifica, two in Half Moon Bay and the remaining sirens will be located near Surfer’s Beach in El Granada.

"Katrina wouldn’t have been Katrina if they had (sirens)," Quinlan said.

He said the initial purpose of the sirens was to warn residents of a terrorist attack, but said they easily could be used to warn the Coastside about a tsunami, surge wave or wildfire.

The new emergency alert system will cost no more than $350,000. Quinlan said the telephone notification system is expected to be in place later this month. Gordon said the specific locations of the sirens are subject to a coastal development permit.

It’s unclear from the report whether the calls will require the use of the fiber optic cable that went out earlier this year, cutting off all communication between the Coastside and the outside world.

In Del Norte County, Crescent City residents are asking why they weren’t warned about this week’s tsunami. The worst to hit California in 40 years, it washed away docks, damaged boats and spread debris, according to the Chronicle:

"They say there was a warning call, but there was no siren or general alarm," said [fisherman Earl]Hensel, who is in his 80s. "It’s a pretty somber group here looking at the damage."

The Chron has a good analysis of what went wrong in the warning system.

The earthquake in Japan caused some big waves on California’s Coast this afternoon. The peak of the wave activity is believed to be over, but the National Weather Service says that surge waves of 1 to 3 feet and traveling at 30mph have been observed at northern and central California tide guages.  Crescent City Harbor reported a surge wave of 6ft that caused extensive damage at the harbor.

The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District will hold an interactive "Issues & Opportunities Public Workshop" on Thursday, November 16, 2006 at 6:30 p.m. at the La Honda Elementary School in La Honda to assist the District in developing a resource protection and visitor-use plan for the nearly 5,800-acre La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve.

In 2004, the District kicked off the master planning process for La Honda Creek Preserve with two public workshops. The planning process was postponed in early 2005 to allow staff to focus on the purchase of the Driscoll Ranch property as an addition to La Honda Open Space Preserve so that it could be formally incorporated as part of the project.  Staff has also been working on completing a detailed assessment of the Preserve’s roads and trails; expanding the available fisheries information for creek corridors, analyzing the costs and benefits of grazing; and compiling highway transportation data.  This information, combined with a detailed biological resources inventory, will allow the District and the public to develop an ecologically sound plan.

At the November 16 workshop, the public will have a much larger area to consider than the original 2,042-acre La Honda Creek Preserve because the District purchased the 3,681-acre Driscoll Ranch, located southwest of the Preserve, earlier this year. With the integration of Driscoll Ranch, La Honda Creek Preserve will now encompass nearly 5,800 acres and become the largest District preserve in San Mateo County.

The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors will hold their final hearing on the update to the Midcoast Local Coastal Program (LCP) on Tuesday, Nov 14 at 9:30am.  The public hearing has been closed, so no additional public testimony will be taken.  The meeting will be held at the supervisors’ chambers, Hall of Justice and Records, 400 County Center, Redwood City [Google Map].

Coastsiders will get a chance to hear from experts on a range of coastal and ocean issues, as well as learn about the regulatory changes for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary at a community workshop in Montara on Tuesday, Nov 14 from 7 to 9pm.

The event, at the Pt. Montara Lighthouse Hostel, 16th St at Highway 1, will highlight topics specific to the San Mateo County coastside community including wildlife disturbance, beach contamination and water quality presented by conservation experts:

 

• James Alamillo, Urban Programs Manager for Heal the Bay

 

• Tim Eichenberg, director of the Pacific regional office of The Ocean Conservancy, and adjunct professor of law at the Vermont Law School Environmental Law Center

 

• Bob Breen, vice chair of the Gulf of Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council, marine biology teacher at Half Moon Bay High School and recently-retired longtime naturalist/ranger for Fitzgerald Marine Reserve

Admission is free. Seating is limited. Click below for more information on the program.

Pillar Point Harbor is filling with sand that is being washed down from the hills in El Granada and which is confined by the harbor’s walls, reports Julia Scott in the County Times.

Pillar Point hasn’t been dredged since the 60s, becuause there is no place to put dump the spoils. The Harbor is considering dumping it on Surfer’s Beach, which has been deprived of sand by the Pillar Point breakwater, but it’s part of a marine sanctuary.

Maria Brown, manager of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuaries, said her agency decided to consider the policy change after hearing from harbor officials and surfers at meetings held up and down the coast in 2002. She said the ban on pumping dredge spoils into sanctuary waters reflected concerns over potential damage to sensitive marine organisms and whether the sediment was free of toxins.

An environmental study of Pillar Point Harbor conducted in 1995 certified that 90 percent of the sediment was clean and would have no effect on marine life, according to Grenell. The other 10 percent is composed of very fine sediment, clay-like in substance that would need to be disposed of at an upstream location away from the tides.

The Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) has transferred 183-acre Lower Purisima Creek to the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (MROSD) for $2.25 million. It is hoped that the land will one day serve as a critical link in an extensive trail network from Skyline Ridge to the Pacific Ocean.

Rising between Lobitos and Tunitas creeks four miles southeast of Half Moon Bay, the property climbs up wooded valleys and grassy slopes, culminating in a long, narrow ridge with ocean views. The sloping land features scrub-covered knolls, lush meadows, redwood groves, eucalyptus stands and a winding, alder-lined creek. It was purchased from a private owner for $2.25 million in February 2005 as part of POST’s Saving the Endangered Coast campaign.