1975: Sierra Club Vice-Chair writes that Wilderness Status INCLUDES Oyster Farm

History coming back to bite the 'environmentalist' (or stalker) who gnawed at the heels of state, local, and national agencies trying to push them into the questionable attempt to rid the estero of the beloved oyster farm because it "ruined his hiking and kayak trips". He should have read the history of his own organization (full disclosure - he got the booted several years ago):

1975 Letter from Vice Chairman for Wilderness Issues, Sierra Club SF Bay Chapter clarifies:

“Wilderness status does not mean an end to the harvesting of oysters in the Estero, or a prohibition on the use of motorboats by the company in carrying out its operations. “

“The Wilderness Act permits prior non-conforming commercial uses to continue and the secretary of the Interior can authorize the continued use of motorboats in support of the enterprise. Departmental memoranda express this quite clearly and the regional solicitor has interpreted the act to permit specifically this commercial operation.”

 

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EAC & NPCA's Neil Desai have some 'splainin' to do.

Marin Voice: Pt. Reyes oyster farm critics ignore environmental facts

By Peter Prows -

Guest op-ed column

THE National Parks Conservation Association's spokesman Neal Desai and his allies like the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin (EAC) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), have some serious explaining to do.

First, they should explain why they have flip-flopped on the oyster farm.

When Congress was debating wilderness legislation for Point Reyes in 1976, every interested environmental and civic organization told Congress that the oyster farm should be allowed to "continue unrestrained by wilderness designation" because it is "considered desirable by both the public and park managers."
What changed?
Second, they should explain why they have such trouble with the truth. Mr. Desai claims that Drakes Estero would be the "first marine wilderness area on the west coast." But Drakes Estero won't even be the first marine wilderness in Point Reyes; it'll be the fourth.
Mr. Desai seems not to have noticed that Estero de Limantour, Abbott's Lagoon, and the southern end of Drakes Estero were designated as wilderness in 1999.
Mr. Desai and his allies have also made claim after false claim of various "egregious" environmental harms allegedly caused by the oyster farm. In fact, Drakes Estero is thriving: the water quality is excellent, eelgrass has doubled, and the harbor seals just had their best pupping season on record.
Third, Mr. Desai and his allies should explain why they goaded state Coastal Commission staff into breaking their agreement with the oyster farm. Commission staff and the oyster farm had agreed that the farm's permit application would be processed when the federal environmental review was complete. Read more

DBOC Files Motion Correcting Coastal Commission's False Statements

Drakes Bay Oyster Files Motion Correcting False Statements by Coastal Commission

California Coastal Commissioner said EAC had been "begging and pleading with them to take action against DBOC for a year and a half." If they relied on the false and misleading statements, Trainer's pat mantra, it's no wonder the agency got it wrong.
{follow link(s) for expanded story} (CCC Items 11.1 and 11.2)