Marine biologists conducting deep dives near five California islands are collecting data they hope will strengthen the case for ending gillnet fishing within a three-mile radius. The Channel Islands often are called the "Galapagos of North America" - due to their diverse ecosystem.

Caitlynn Birch, a marine scientist with the group Oceana, is part of a dive team collecting environmental DNA water samples and said they're analyzed in a lab to detect virtually all the animals and plants there, through the "footprint" they leave behind in the water column.

"This is important because the Channel Islands is an extremely biodiverse region, due to the topography of the sea floor, due to the oceanographic currents - and so, it creates a really unique habitat for many animals," she explained.

Fisherman use invisible gillnets along the seafloor to catch profitable halibut and white sea bass. But whales, sea lions and sharks can also be trapped. The method is banned off the coasts of Central and Northern California, but still used in federal waters, offshore banks, and around the Channel Islands. A bill before California lawmakers would end those exemptions.

About 30 fishermen still have active set gillnet permits in Southern California, but the state has stopped issuing new permits. Those who fish the waters say it would threaten their livelihoods, while Birch believes it would help protect critical habitat for vulnerable and recovering animals.

"Each island is so diverse and different from one another - different rocky substates, and different animal and plant life on the physical islands. And then, it's interesting to see how that's correlated below and what sorts of different species and assemblages that we're seeing at each of the islands," Birch continued.

This month, divers have collected samples on Santa Barbara, Anacapa, Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa islands. The waters there provide feeding areas and migratory routes for large whales - including endangered humpback whales - nurseries for great white shark pups, breeding and foraging habitat for California sea lions and giant seabass, cold-water corals, and giant kelp forests.

California has set a goal to protect 30% of its land and waters by the year 2030, so the Ocean Protection Council is working on which waters should count as protected and is identifying new conservation measures.

A public comment period on its draft framework just ended.

Drew Talley, professor of environmental and ocean sciences at the University of San Diego, said the proposal is on the right track but needs a little more work when it comes to estuaries, where the rivers meet the sea.

"It doesn't look at some of the main threats those systems are facing," Talley explained. "Including sea level rise, degraded water quality and ongoing effects of historical alterations like dams and diking and urban runoff."

The Ocean Protection Council is expected to release its final proposal Dec. 9. Estuaries are crucial habitat for many species. They also buffer communities from floods during a storm, reduce ocean acidification and help fight climate change, since marine plants store a great deal of carbon.

Kerstin Wasson, research coordinator for the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve near Monterey, said the contours of protected areas need to be widened, to account for the effects of climate change.

"With accelerated sea level rise, they're going to need a lot of space to migrate upwards," Wasson urged. "If we were to draw a circle around an estuary to say what's protected, it needs to be 10 feet above where the marsh is today."

More than 90% of California's historic wetlands have been lost to development.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.


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Anglers along the Atlantic coast want stricter regulations to help improve stocks of Atlantic herring, a forage fish vital to a healthy ocean ecosystem.

The population was once depleted from decades of overfishing and has struggled to recover, affecting the health of larger, prized fish up the food chain.

Rich Hittinger, first vice president of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association, said it hurts local fishermen and the small coastal businesses that support them.

"We see the striped bass and the other fish not showing up in an area," Hittinger observed. "Because the forage fish aren't there."

Anglers have asked the New England Fishery Management Council to reestablish a 12-mile offshore buffer zone for large herring trawlers. Nearly all respondents to a recent public comment period backed further actions to protect the Atlantic herring and other forage fish.

A recent assessment of Atlantic herring stock showed little progress has been made in rebuilding the population. Despite increased management, federal regulators say the likelihood of meeting stock targets for next year is less than 1%.

Jaclyn Higgins, forage fish program manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, said she is concerned the science driving harvest restrictions of forage fish has not caught up with what is happening in the ocean.

"We really want to make sure that we use all of the information that we have to move this ecosystem-based management framework forward," Higgins urged. "Improve the models, improve what we have, and not stay stagnant with the status quo."

Higgins noted the Atlantic herring stock currently sits at just 26% of its biomass target. She is hopeful more data collection and research funding will lead to regionally specific and precautionary measures to better protect fisheries and the communities they serve.

Critics of a conservative plan to expand offshore oil drilling said it endangers coastal communities who rely on a healthy ocean.

Project 2025, written by the right-leaning Heritage Foundation, aims to dramatically reshape U.S. energy policy, opening millions of acres to new oil and gas production.

Angelo Villagomez, ocean director at the Center for American Progress, said it prioritizes short-term profits over long-term climate sustainability.

"It's going to prohibit the United States from even including the word climate change in any of our government documents," Villagomez pointed out. "You can't deal with these real threats just by closing your eyes and pretending that it's not there."

While offshore drilling is illegal in New Hampshire, Villagomez noted operations elsewhere spread toxins far and wide, harming marine life and vital habitats. Supporters of the plan said offshore drilling releases fewer emissions and gets America closer to being energy independent.

Project 2025 also promotes the dismantling and privatization of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The federal agency handles the vast majority of climate, weather and marine science research as well as commercial fishing regulations. Villagomez argued breaking up the agency could lead to chaos on the water and economic instability for vital industries throughout New England.

"NOAA manages all of our fisheries," Villagomez explained. "So are we going to let all of the states have different rules for how we manage fisheries?"

Former President Donald Trump has claimed he has no knowledge of Project 2025, however many parts of the plan were written by members of his former administration. The plan would undo much of President Joe Biden's executive order to protect at least 30% of American land and ocean areas by 2030.