Fishing banned from most of Laguna Beach this fall

Most of Laguna’s shoreline will be closed to anglers starting this fall.

The city’s  Fish and Game Commission announced that implementation of the Marine Protected Areas, or MPAs, in Southern California will begin Oct. 1 under regulations adopted in December that ban fishing from certain coastal areas.

“Commercial lobster fishermen will lose 30% to 40% of their income with the 7-mile closure of Laguna’s coastline,” Councilman Kelly Boyd told the Coastline Pilot. “As for recreational fishing, sea mammals eat way more than a fisherman catches, and under the restrictions, a man can’t even take his grandson grunion hunting.”

Laguna already has no-take areas, such as Treasure Island and Main Beach tide pools. The ban is expected to start on opening day of the recreational lobster season. Under the regulations, Laguna has three MPAs, said Marine Safety Chief Kevin Snow, who attended a two-hour meeting Tuesday morning with commission representatives.

Read the rest on the LA Times blog here.