A record number of whales are suffering from entanglements in California waters, according to North Coast Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, which led him to successfully move a bill to Gov. Jerry Brown for final consideration.
McGuire’s Senate Bill 1287 would protect whales by removing lost and abandoned crab fishing gear from the ocean. A regulatory program would create incentives for fishermen to retrieve Dungeness crab fishing gear that would have otherwise been lost in the Pacific’s waters, and minimize hazards to whales and other marine life.
In 2016 to date, there have been 40 reports of entangled whales off the state’s coastline, many of which are becoming caught in lost or abandoned crab fishing gear.
In 2015, 57 whales were entangled, according to McGuire’s office, referencing records from the National Marine Fisheries Service. The 57 entanglements in 2015 were the highest since records began to be kept in 1982.
“We need this legislation, now more than ever. Whale entanglement numbers are skyrocketing off the California coast and we’re bringing together crabbers and environmentalists to get this common sense bill signed into law,” McGuire said in a statement Friday.
McGuire said crab fishermen are already taking the lead on the whale entanglement issue. A voluntary pilot project was launched two years ago, and since, at least 1,500 previously lost crab pots have been collected. McGuire said SB 1287 would build upon this pilot project.
Under SB 1287, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife would be tasked with establishing the retrieval program, which would not be paid by taxpayers, but from industry related fees.
Dungeness crab fishermen, who obtain a retrieval permit through this program, would collect old crab traps after the crab season has closed each year. Those fishermen would then be paid a recovery bounty for each trap retrieved from the ocean. The bill would also establish a fee to be paid by the owner who lost or abandoned the crab trap.
McGuire said crab fishermen who don’t buy back their lost or abandoned crab traps would not be able to get a vessel permit the next season.
“The Dungeness crab fishery is in the top tier of California’s commercial seafood catch and the entire industry has weathered a challenging few years, including the historic delay of this year’s Dungeness crab season,” McGuire said. “This gear retrieval program will be a great step forward in cleaning up our oceans and making a safer environment for the people who work the Pacific for their living and the whales and marine life that call the ocean home.”
