This ongoing issue emerges again.
An excerpt.
Marine sanctuary idea bobs up again
Talk of drilling and effluent dumping revives interest in extending coast preserve.
By David Whitney -- Bee Washington BureauPublished 12:01 am PDT Sunday, September 3, 2006
WASHINGTON -- Renewed worries about offshore oil drilling and effluent dumping are reviving hopes of extending the southern boundary of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary to protect waters off the Central California coast.
Environmentalists, working with the chamber of commerce, hope to generate enough enthusiasm for the idea to persuade the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors this fall to seek congressional action adding more than 40 miles of coastline to the existing sanctuary.
If enacted, it would mean that the sanctuary would extend more than 300 miles from Marin County to Point Sal State Beach, covering over a third of the state's coastline. Marine sanctuaries are off limits to oil and gas development and dumping, but not to commercial and sport fishing.
A marine sanctuary off the San Luis Obispo coast has been under consideration virtually since the Monterey Bay sanctuary was created in 1992. It has lacked the necessary political support to move ahead.
Sanctuary planning faded four years ago when, after thorough consideration, divided community leaders and activists decided to focus instead on measures to study and protect marine resources.
But Congress is now grappling with whether to rewrite moratoria that have blocked offshore drilling for two decades and to provide lucrative incentives to states for new leasing. That issue will come to a head when lawmakers return to work this week.
