Sea Otters 2

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article 11/16/05 By JOSHUA MOLINA ]


... The Santa Barbara City Council fumbled through a disjointed three-hour meeting on Tuesday over whether to abolish an otter-free zone off the coast.

... Multiple attempts to craft motions failed.

... The panel eventually directed its staff to draft a letter opposing a translocation plan and expressing concerns about any penalties for commercial fishermen who accidentally harm sea otters. The matter will come back to the council in December.

... Council members Das Williams and Helene Schneider brought the matter to the full council on Tuesday night. Nearly 20 people spoke in a lively meeting.

They both want the otter-free zone abolished and were frustrated with their colleagues' unwillingness to take a clear stand on the issue.

"Has translocation failed? I think that is utterly clear," said Councilman Williams. "Translocation has not worked. It doesn't work to try and spend millions of dollars to recover a species while engaged in activities that lead to its death."

Mr. Williams said the city needs to set higher environmental standards and learn from the mistakes of the past.

"Humanity in general has done our local environment and in particular sea otters a disservice in the past," Mr. Williams said.

But Councilman Brian Barnwell couldn't support Mr. Williams' proposal. Looking frustrated all night with Mr. Williams' words, Mr. Barnwell frequently took off his glasses, sighed and shook his head when Mr. Williams spoke.

"I am not easy with this whole thing here," Mr. Barnwell said. "It isn't the way we do business here. This is completely out of line."

Mr. Barnwell criticized the way the issue came before the full council, saying that it didn't follow the process. Several times during the meeting, he poked fun at a UCSB master's thesis that proponents of abolishing the zone were using as one of several sources for suggesting that protecting the otters would help tourism.

"It is so out of whack with the way of the city of Santa Barbara does stuff that I am having trouble even listening to this discussion. I am not happy with this. I don't like it. and I don't ever want to find myself in this position again."

The councilman had an ally in Councilwoman Iya Falcone.

"The fishing fleet in this community is historic and should be protected," Ms. Falcone said, pointing out that the city's maritime history is strong and that every human got here initially by sea.

Although she acknowledged that the translocation plan has not worked, she said that the issue needs more study.

"It's a balancing act that we have to take very seriously and take our time with," Ms. Falcone said...


Council struggles in debate over otters