SACRAMENTO, April 24, 2009 - Assemblywoman Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) has introduced dangerous legislation, AB 1253, to remove gamefish status for striped bass in California. The bill will be heard in the Water, Parks & Recreation Committee of the California State Assembly in Meeting Room 437, on Tuesday, April 28, at 9 a.m.
The bill is opposed by an unprecedented coalition of recreational fishing, commercial fishing and environmental restoration groups and businesses. Representatives of these groups will be attending the hearing on Tuesday to testify against the bill and will be available for comments to the media.
The proposed legislation would prohibit regulation of striped bass by the California Department of Fish and Game. Passage would allow unlimited, indiscriminate harvest of striped bass. Assemblywoman Fuller's stated intent is to increase water exports from the Delta by an indirect and scientifically ill-advised approach.
Ms. Fuller claims that removing striped bass from gamefish protection would decrease the population of striped bass and consequently reduce the predation of the fish on threatened and endangered smelt and salmon. In reality, AB1253 would only decimate the striped bass recreational fishery throughout the State, and particularly in the Bay and Delta region, along with the economy that depends on the striped bass fishery.
"Assemblywoman Fuller's legislation fails to recognize that historically, striped bass have coexisted in abundance with Delta Smelt and all the salmon species," states John Beuttler, conservation director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance. "The State's foremost experts on Delta's fisheries, including respected scientists Peter Moyle, Matt Nobriga, and David Ostrach, agree that striped bass predation does not impact smelt and salmon populations."
"The rapid decline in native species (Smelt and Salmon) and desirable species (Striped Bass) across the board can be attributed to poor water quality, insufficient fresh water flows into the Delta, excessive pumping, and fish entrainment at the Federal and State water pumps," says Barbara-Barrigan Parrilla, campaign director of Restore the Delta."
"If you were to amend your bill to identify the true cause of our fish declines - diversions upstream and within the Delta that are far in excess of whatever water may be surplus to the needs of the fish and the ecosystem - then we could support it," says Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations. "But blaming Striped bass for the salmon decline is at best a red herring."
A previous press release and list of organizations opposing AB 1253 is attached:
News Release: April 10, 2009:
Bakersfield Legislator Attacks Bay-Delta Fisheries
Jean Fuller, assemblywoman from Bakersfield, has introduced legislation (AB 1253) to remove gamefish status for striped bass. Passage would allow unlimited, indiscriminate harvest of striped bass. The proposed legislation would prohibit regulation of striped bass by the California Department of Fish and Game.
Assemblywoman Fuller's stated intent is to enhance water exports from the Delta by an indirect and scientifically ill-advised approach. Ms. Fuller claims that removing striped bass from gamefish protection would decrease the population of striped bass and consequently reduce the predation of striped bass on threatened and endangered smelt and salmon. The hypothesized increased abundance of delta smelt and salmon would, according to Fuller's reasoning, facilitate increased water exports.
In reality, AB1253 would only decimate the striped bass recreational fishery, throughout the State, and particularly in the Bay and Delta region, along with the economy that depends on the striped bass fishery.
Assemblywoman Fuller admits that her local constituents - water contractors, who receive subsidized water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta estuary - drafted the proposed legislation. This special interest legislation has no co-sponsors in the assembly and no counterpart legislation in the senate.
The California Department of Fish and Game deliberately introduced striped bass in the late 1800s - striped bass are an introduced species, not an invasive species. According to numerous studies conducted by respected California academic institutions, the California Department of Fish and Game, the US Fish & Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and biologists working for the water contractors; the striped bass diet includes an insignificant amount of threatened and endangered smelt, salmon, and sturgeon.
Assemblywoman Fuller's legislation "fails to recognize that historically, striped bass have coexisted in abundance with Delta Smelt and all the salmon species," states John Beuttler, conservation director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance. "The dramatic declines in smelt and salmon are primarily due to the impacts caused by the Central Valley Project and State Water Project that export close to half the natural freshwater inflow to the Delta. The State's foremost experts on Delta's fisheries, including respected scientists Peter Moyle, Matt Nobriga, and David Ostrach, agree that striped bass predation does not impact smelt and salmon populations."
"All the studies that have been done on striped bass feeding habits show that they virtually never take Delta smelt," says Peter Moyle, a University of California, Davis, professor and California's most respected expert on the state's native fishes. "Even when smelt were abundant, it was rare to find them in bass stomachs." adds Moyle.
Assemblywoman Fuller's legislation was introduced without consultation or support from either the California Department of Fish and Game or the California Fish & Game Commission. "The science clearly refutes the need for this legislation and our State's resource agencies oppose it," asserts Gary Adams, former president of the California Striped Bass Association. "The last thing we need is knee-jerk biology," adds Adams.
"Striped bass anglers comprise a significant portion of the Bay-Delta fishermen and this legislation will put tackle shops, boat manufacturers, boat dealers, marinas, guides, and the myriad of other Bay-Delta businesses that depend on the striped bass fishery out of business," states Dick Pool, leader of Water4Fish, an organization with more than 50,000 supporters. "We need sound science before we put these folks on the unemployment rolls."
Collaborative, policy-based and science-based efforts are ongoing to address California's need for a reliable water supply and ecosystem restoration. The recently-completed Delta Vision process is such an example. These efforts explicitly address whether striped bass are a significant predator of threatened and endangered smelt and salmon. In light of these efforts, Assemblywoman Fuller's proposed legislation could be viewed as special interests usurping cooperative, deliberate, regulatory, democratic processes. "The problems of the Bay-Delta ecosystem demand a cooperative solution, not special interest legislation. Unfortunately, Assemblywoman Fuller's proposed legislation and her related media efforts will cause the stakeholders to retrench their age old positions at a critical time when we must focus on our mutual goals and deemphasize petty differences," states Doug Lovell, chairman of the Bay-Delta Committee of the Federation of Fly Fishers and longtime Bay-Delta conservationist.
Dan Blanton, a nationally-recognized author and striped bass expert sums up AB1253: "This legislation is a blatant attempt by certain greedy irrigation farmers to remove anglers from the water equation. Remove the fish, the anglers lose interest, the fishing-related businesses go bankrupt, and our vocal opposition to irresponsible water exports ends. Fortunately, that is not how it will work. Jean Fuller has grossly underestimated our dedication to preserving the unique Bay-Delta environment."
To voice your opposition to this legislation, visit WWW.SAVEOURSTRIPERS.ORG
List of organizations opposing AB 1253:
California Sportfishing Protection Alliance
Stripers Forever
Recreational Fishing Alliance (RFA)
SouthWest Council - Federation of Fly Fishers
Sierra Pacific Flyfishers
Northern California Council - Federation of Fly Fishers (Fresno)
Fullspeed Fishing Club
Coastside Fishing Club
California Fisheries Restoration Foundation
Golden West Women Flyfishers
Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers
California Striped Bass Association (West Delta Chapter)
Solano Flyfishers
Tri-Valley Fly Fishers
B2B Hawg Handlers
Diablo Valley Fly Fishermen
Marin Rod & Gun Club
Marin Bass Club
Flycasters Inc. (Campbell)
Fly Anglers Unlimited
Flycasters Inc. (San Jose)
Tracy Fly Fishers
Granite Bay Flycasters
Gold Country Fly Fishers
Northern California Council - Federation of Fly Fishers (Penn Valley)
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association (PCFFA)
Restore the Delta
Golden Gate Fisherman's Association (GGFA)
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