Lily the Gray Whale came into Dana Point Harbor and she left a mark on many because of her struggle to survive and her very tragic death.
It wasn't just those involved in her rescue or those touched by her story but the bigger picture has to do with the very survival of the Gray Whale population.
Tonight, the Dana Point City Council will call for further study and assessment of the California Gray Whale to find out if they are indeed thriving or barely making it. And the only organization dedicated to this whale, the California Gray Whale Coalition is not only pushing for study but for the Obama Administration to demand that the Gray Whale be kept from whaling quotas.
First off, here is the resolution from the City of Dana Point...
5/24/2010 Page 1 Item # 15
CITY OF DANA POINT
AGENDA REPORT
____________________________________________________________________
DATE: MAY 24, 2010
TO: CITY MANAGER / HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: MIKE KILLEBREW, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER
SEA SHELTON, SENIOR MANAGEMENT ANALYST
SUBJECT: SUPPORT FOR THE CALIFORNIA GRAY WHALE
____________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
That the City Council 1) adopt a Resolution entitled:
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DANA POINT, CALIFORNIA JOINING THE ASSEMBLY AND THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IN CALLING UPON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO CONDUCT A COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT OF THE CALIFORNIA GRAY WHALE
DISCUSSION:
The City of Dana Point was recently approached by representatives of the California Gray Whale Coalition, the only North American group focused solely on the protection and survival of the California Gray Whale. The Coalition requested that the City consider adopting a resolution in support of the State legislature’s request to have the Federal Government conduct a comprehensive assessment of the current California Gray Whale population and, if necessary, reinstate it on the Endangered Species List with all the protections that accompany the designation.
The Coalition provided the following data in support of its request:
Once inhabiting many of the world's oceans, there were four races of gray whales. Today, the California Gray Whale (Eschrichtius robustus) is the last surviving population, but it faces major threats from climate change and industrialization.
In 1975, the California Gray Whale was declared the official California State Marine Mammal.
In 1970, the Federal Government placed the California Gray Whale on the Endangered and Threatened Species List when its estimated population was reduced to approximately 12,000.
In 1994, the Federal Government removed it from the endangered species list when the population rose to approximately 23,000.
It is believed that one-third to almost one-half of the population was wiped out in 1999-2000, but the National Marine Fisheries Service has not published an estimate of the California Gray Whale population since 2001.
In 2008, whale watching in California generated $14.3 million in direct revenue, with an additional $68.5 million in indirect revenue and an estimated 1.3 million people participating.
In 2008, the Coalition successfully lobbied the California Assembly and Senate to adopt an Assembly Joint Resolution calling for the Federal Government to authorize urgent studies of the major threats facing the gray whales.
Recently, the California Gray Whale Coalition gained the support of California Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (6th Congressional District), who submitted an appropriations request for government funding for a comprehensive study of the major threats facing the California Gray Whale.
Dana Point has long celebrated the annual arrival of the California Gray Whale to its waters with its Annual Festival of Whales. The California Gray Whale is important for public education, recreational value, aesthetic appeal and scientific interest to the residents of Dana Point. Currently there is no habitat protection for the Pacific Coast Feeding Aggregation in California, Oregon or Washington State and there are inconsistencies in the protection status given to Gray Whales.
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DANA POINT, CALIFORNIA JOINING THE ASSEMBLY AND THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IN CALLING UPON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO CONDUCT A COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT OF THE CALIFORNIA GRAY WHALE
WHEREAS, the City of Dana Point (“City”) is a public body, corporate and politic; and
WHEREAS, each year, the California Gray Whale migrates along the California coast to feeding grounds in the Arctic, a journey of 8,500 to 11,000 miles; and
WHEREAS, The California Gray Whale, adopted in 1975 as the official State Marine Mammal, is important to the people of California for public education, recreational value, aesthetic appeal, economic significance and scientific interest, and whale watching contributes to local economies in direct revenues and in the overall economic well-being of coastal communities, including the creation of jobs and the generation of tens of millions of dollars in California annually; and
WHEREAS, the Federal Government placed the California Gray Whale on the endangered and threatened species list in 1970 when its estimated population was approximately 12,000 and removed it from that list in 1994 when the population rose to approximately 23,000; and
WHEREAS, the National Marine Fisheries Service has not published an estimate of the California Gray Whale population since 2001; and
WHEREAS, in 2008, the California State Legislature adopted Assembly Joint Resolution 49 requesting Congress and the President of the United States to call upon the National Marine Fisheries Service to undertake an immediate and comprehensive assessment of the California Gray Whale; and
WHEREAS, there is currently no habitat protection for the Pacific Coast Feeding Aggregation in California, Oregon or Washington State and there are inconsistencies in the protection that states give to California Gray Whales, as Oregon lists the gray whale as endangered, Washington lists the gray whale as sensitive and California, by law, defers to the Federal Government and lists the gray whale as recovered; and
NOW THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Dana Point HEREBY RESOLVES as follows:
Section 1. The City Council of the City of Dana Point does hereby join with the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California in calling upon the Federal Government to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the California Gray Whale, to include all current research covering the migration routes, population dynamics And mortality of the California Gray Whale and the impacts of threats to the California Gray Whale population.
Section 2. The City Clerk shall certify to the passage and adoption of this Resolution and enter it in the book of original resolutions.
Section 3. This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption.
PASSED, APPROVED, AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Dana Point this 24th day of May, 2010.
It is time we took an assessment of the California Gray Whales, threatened and at risk because of many threats, from ship strikes, to climate change and sadly, due to whaling as well.
The IWCC is proposing an annual quota of 140 Gray Whales to be added to the slaughter by whaling Countries in their resolution to end the ban on Commercial whaling.
This is a real threat to whales that travel along our coasts and that are such an important part of the ocean's ecosystem. California is so very lucky to have so many kinds of whales migrate it's coast (right now, blue whales, fin whales and humpback whales can be found in our waters as well as some gray whales on their migration to the Arctic feeding grounds).
And just yesterday, many gathered in Laguna Beach near where I live and across the pacific coast to protest the end to commercial whaling, Supporters to rally for whales Sunday, an event that I was not aware of and I'm very sorry to have missed.
Opponents of commercial whaling will meet at 10 a.m., Sunday at the Main Beach Cobblestones in Laguna Beach.
Signatures will be gathered to protest the proposed removal of the moratorium on commercial whaling, allowing whaling to resume for a period of 10 years. City Councilwoman Verna Rollinger, who has been collecting signatures for several weeks, will introduce speakers in opposition to the resumption.
Among those scheduled to speak are California Assemblyman Pedro Nava and Long Beach 5th District Councilwoman and Orange County Democratic Party Executive Director Gerrie Schipske. Also scheduled: Doug Thompson, author and award-winning film-maker; Dave Anderson, who filmed the documentary “Wild Dolphins & Whales of Southern California,” and Mike Bursk, captain of the Dana Point Ocean Institute’s R/V Sea Explorer for six years.
These beautiful mammals, friendly, wise and so important to me and others deserve a chance to thrive and I hope you will take some action on their behalf. The California Gray Whale is not just for California, or the Pacific Coast or the US, it's like any other species, we need to protect it for future generations, all over the world.
URGENT ACTION ALERT
EMAIL US IWC DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, DOUG DE MASTER AT:-
douglas.demaster@noaa.gov
I object to the US IWC delegation supporting an annual quota of 140 Gray whales at the forthcoming IWC meeting. Until such time as there is independently reviewed current research which demonstrates the status of the population and investigates the ramifications of the major threats,
particularly climate change, the only acceptable action is to request a moratorium.
Signed.
SEND THE SAME MESSAGE TO THE WHITE HOUSE.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/...
And here is a wonderful video about the Gray Whale and why we need more study...
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