The Surfrider Foundation is supporting legislation (AB 976) in California that will allow the Coastal Commission to impose fines for intentional violations of the Coastal Act.
AB 976, by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, offers a critical tool to help the Coastal Commission resolve the over 1,900 ‘backlogged’ enforcement cases currently pending before the Commission.
Los Angeles County is the epicenter for this growing epidemic of coastal abuse, especially Malibu.
The map illustrates that of 1,944 Coastal Act violations (e.g. open, unresolved cases, some of which go back 10 years), 690 are in Los Angeles County. And get this: 533 of which are in Malibu!
Source: California Coastal Commission August 2013
So, Malibu has more than 25% of all the total Coastal Act Violations for over 1,100 miles of public coastline. Los Angeles County has over one third of the violations. And remember that most of these acts of coastal abuse are the illegal blocking of public access, a fundamental right of all Californians.
In addition, consider that over 68 of these violations have come in since AB 976 was introduced in early 2013. So, we're facing a mushrooming epidemic of coastal abuse. Los Angeles is ground zero for this abuse and the key Senators who hold the coastline's fate in their hands are from L.A.
Take action today:
1. If you live in Los Angeles call you Senator. Here are the key LA Senators who need to hear from us:
Ron Calderon representing Montebello
Ed Hernandez representing West Covina
Norma J. Torres representing Montclair, Pomona and Rialto
Roderick D. Wright representing central LA cities
2. Other Senators who need to here from you:
Lou Correa representing Santa Ana
Ben Hueso representing southern San Diego
What to say:
The message is simple. Call them and tell the person who answers, “Hi, I am [your name] and I live in your district and I urge your support of AB 976 that will provide enforcement power so that the Coastal Commission can maintain beach access in our area.”
3. If you live elsewhere in California send your support here.
Source: LA Times, August 17, 2013