Preserving San Diego Bay for Wildlife

In comments and actions, the San Diego Unified Port District commissioners have made it obvious that they intend to encourage more recreational boating use of San Diego Bay.

This would be a mistake. More jet skis and motor boats and even kayaks and canoes could turn San Diego Bay into a Mission Bay South and harm the already dwindling supply of plant and animal life.

Before projects, such as a National City Marina or a Chula Vista Nautical Activity Center, move forward, there needs to be a new Port District master plan for San Diego Bay, which looks at the cumulative effects of the nearly 30 projects that have been proposed along or in the bay. And to develop a sound master plan, additional studies of plant and animal life are required.

We need to know, for instance, what the impact will be on diving ducks. Diving ducks’ winter use of the bay has already been reduced 90% since the late 1960s. And what about the black brant, a wild goose? The 1990-91 mid-winter count found only 59 black brant on the entire bay. In the 1880s, there were 50,000-100,000 wintering on Spanish Bight, now part of Coronado. Will these species disappear if the bay becomes overrun with boaters?

And what will happen to the California halibut hatchery-nursery in South Bay can only be guessed at, but present conditions in Mission Bay might give clues.

San Diego Bay is the only major resting and wintering area for birds between Bahia de San Quintin in Baja and San Francisco Bay. If we lose all of San Diego Bay’s natural habitat except the 2,500 acres proposed as a national wildlife refuge, we would be likely to lose dozens of species of birds and wildlife.

Do the port commissioners and other local leaders really want this to happen? Do they really want another Mission Bay? Maybe they should ask the grandchildren of their grandchildren.