Navy, Surfers Calm Troubled Waters : Agreement on Use of Seal Beach Surf Shows Value of Cooperation, Accommodation

The very idea of Navy brass sitting down to negotiate with a band of surfers over a strip of beach is itself a telling vignette in contrasting Orange County lifestyles.

So maybe what happened in Seal Beach is an example of why a diverse county, made up of every conceivable political ideology, socioeconomic group and uniform of the day somehow works. It works through a spirit of “live and let live.”

This battle for the beachhead could have been more nasty, after all. In August, armed Navy guards began enforcing a ban on surfing and fishing at an uncrowded strip at the mouth of Anaheim Bay. It has long been a favorite spot for local surfers who would hike in and ride the big waves. The Navy argued that the area always had been off limits, but that surfers had broken through chain-link fence and taken away “no trespassing signs.” It was worried about injuries and liability resulting from wipeouts. And then there was the proverbial national security argument--the explanation that the prohibition on surfing was aimed at protecting the base’s stockpile of weapons and ammunition.

The surfers made a reasoned case that they were not surf terrorists, only surf lovers. Being so far from the center of the action of the base hardly could constitute a security risk. And they enlisted the politically savvy Surfrider Foundation to make their case to Navy brass. Gordon LaBedz, a Seal Beach surfer and member of the city’s Beaches Commission, initiated the talks and brought in the environmental group of surfers.

Under the agreement, surfers must stay at a 50-foot distance from a jetty the Navy considers dangerous, and fishing will be prohibited. Fair enough. The posted rules bear logos of the Navy, Seal Beach, and the Surfrider Foundation. That puts a Good Housekeeping-style Seal of Approval on a deal opening a pristine beach while respecting the concerns of the military.