Proposed Ban on Croaker Rejected as Too Broad
A proposed emergency ban on commercial fishing for white croaker caught off the Palos Verdes Peninsula has been rejected as too broad by the state Office of Administrative Law.
John Smith, chief counsel for the agency, said the ban could still be imposed if it is drafted to conform more closely to the state statute that authorizes such steps.
But at a news conference Tuesday on the Santa Monica Pier, Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) portrayed the legal office’s decision--made Monday--as an instance of state foot-dragging on the white croaker issue.
The state Department of Fish and Game proposed the ban last week after state health officials pointed to new evidence that white croaker near the peninsula carry excessive levels of cancer-causing DDT and PCBs.
Tons of the chemicals were pumped through sewage outfalls in the area in the 1950s, ‘60s and early ‘70s.
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