Kasawari Lembeh from David R. Andrew on Vimeo.

Scientists now have hard evidence for something they have long believed _ that establishing no-fishing zones in the ocean will help replenish fish populations far away that have been over-harvested.

Authors of the study published online Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE said it bolsters scientific evidence for establishing marine reserves in coastal waters, which have faced stiff opposition from the fishing industry.

Lead author Mark Christie of Oregon State University said they used DNA sampling on 1,073 yellow tang, a popular aquarium fish, off the Kona Coast of Hawaii in 2006 and found their offspring were as far as 114 miles away. Two fish in unprotected areas were genetically linked to parents inside protected areas.

http://gazettetimes.com/news/state-and-regional/article_f4917635-f6bf-56b5-ac9c-9eb95e202fcb.html

For Immediate Release from San Diego Coastkeeper:

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

San Diego – Dec. 15, 2010 – San Diego’s new MPAs will include locations at Swamis in Encinitas, south La Jolla, Point Loma and Imperial Beach, areas that San Diego Coastkeeper has worked to protect over the past four years. These protected areas will join the existing network of MPAs in the statewide system of underwater parks called for in California’s ocean conservation law, the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) adopted with bipartisan support in 1999.

The FGC voted in favor of the Integrated Preferred Alternative (IPA), a compromise plan that combines MPA proposals from fishermen, divers, conservationists and scientists. The governor convened a Blue Ribbon Task Force of policy experts to review a selection of MPA proposals created by a group of 64 representatives from Southern California, including a San Diego Coastkeeper representative. In December 2009, the Task Force unanimously recommended the IPA to the Commission for adoption into law.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6123030/san_diego_ocean_protection_takes_historic.html?cat=58

See also here from DFG map of MPAs:

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/pdfs/scmpas121510.pdf