Thursday, February 18, 2010

Marine Sanctuaries Joint Advisory Council met today at Elkus Ranch: Mavericks Surf Contest was on the agenda

February 18, 2010 meeting

Once a year Gulf of the Farallones and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaries hold a joint advisory council meeting.  This was a full-day meeting, public comment was held at 9:30am and 1:15pm.

agenda included:
West Coast Acidification Task Force
San Mateo Coastside Visitors Center and Sanctuary 
Pillar Point Harbor Dredging and Disposal Project
Water Quality Protection Program
Enhanced Ecosystem Management Initiative
NOAA Office of Law Enforcement Update
Mavericks Surf Contest
Enforcement Discussion
Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA)
Sanctuary Contributions to MLPA Implementation Activities

Both Jeff Clark and Catherine Clark spoke during the afternoon public comment period. 

Jeff Clark said, "I have surfed Mavericks over 30 years."  Jeff asked the Council to consult with him about jet skies.

Catherine Clark said she has repeatedly asked San Mateo County officials who the authorizing agency is and has not received a clear answer.  She said the contest is very important.

Richard Charter, Chair of the Joint Advisory Council kicked off the discussion with the following comments, "Protecting human life is extremely important. I don't want to see this agency be an accessory to criminal negligence. We are enabling this contest, last year we were promised Mavericks would insure public safety.  The response from Mavericks Surf Ventures has been cavalier and irresponsible."

During the discussion a council member said that the woman who sustained a head injury from a falling boulder during the 2006 contest later died after months of intensive care at Stanford Medical Center.  This point was not disputed by Jeff Clark or Catherine Clark during the meeting.  

Today, the Half Moon Bay Review reported that Mavericks Surf Ventures CEO Keir Beadling said the woman underwent multiple brain surgeries and eventually "sued Mavericks Surf Ventures for neglecting to warn people of the imminent dangers at the beach."  Based on the conflicting information its unclear if the woman sued before she died, if her family sued after she died or if she is still alive.  

Supervisor Rich Gordon will hold an agency meeting that is not open to the public Monday, February 22 at 10:30am.  The unified command; Mavericks Surf Ventures, County Sherifs, Cal Fire, AMR, Harbor District and County Parks will be at the private meeting. 

I have more to write on this meeting so check back later....

at 7:52 PM

2 comments:

  1. Pelican Eye, and all:

    I opened a can of worms. I am Brenda Donald, a member of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Advisory Council. I represent the Public-at-Large for San Francisco and San Mateo Counties.

    During the Mavericks Surf Contest discussion at the 2/18/10 joint meeting the Monterey and Gulf of the Farallones Sanctuaries I mentioned that I had heard that the woman who sustained the head injury a few years ago had died. For the record: I should have presented this statement as a question since I could not recall who I heard the comment from and I did not posses any official reports to follow up on. It was meant as an inquiry that came across as a rumor. I will contact the Council Coordinator to look into having the record reflect this gaff. I received a phone call from a constituent last night concerning this subject. Mea Culpa.

    The roll of the National Marine Sanctuary Program is specific: to protect marine resources up to the mean high tide mark. All in all I think the contest and the Sanctuary staff has done a pretty good job of this, with lessons learned along the way. Crowd control and resource protection on land are under other numerous authorities. The comments at yesterdays Sanctuary meeting reflected considerable confusion as to which agency is responsible for any given area. I hope this gets clarified at the Monday meeting.

    Brenda Donald, a resident of Montara
    ReplyDelete
  2. The comment from Brenda Donald was posted on the Half Moon Bay Review website this morning.

    http://talkabout.hmbreview.com/topic.php?t=5727&c=5&d=
    ReplyDelete

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