Global fish production, the term used for both growing farmed and catching wild fish, has steadily increased to three times what it was a half century ago. It is now over 300 billion pounds/year. As the wild fish steadily disappear, the business of aquaculture (fish farming) grows, and both are taxing ocean ecosystems. Numbers vary, but about three quarters of the world’s “fish stocks” (our anthropocentric term, they exist only for us) are considered depleted or fully exploited. Technology and desire for trawling the oceans and netting huge catches grew to far beyond sustainability. And then there is the by-catch. One example: a study in the 90’s on shrimp trawling in the Gulf of Mexico, showed that for every pound of shrimp caught, 10 pounds of other species, such as sea turtles, were caught and discarded.

About a fifth of those tons of fish caught and farmed are used for fishmeal for livestock feed, fertilizer, and to raise more fish. Fish oil is also used for aquaculture and human consumption. Three times the weight of fish in fishmeal is needed to grow a salmon. (Though it is believed that in the wild, the salmon would require as much as ten times its weight.) In the future, grains and even livestock byproducts might be use for farming fish, as the wild species continue to vanish.

People now eat more meat and fish than they used to, a great thing for poorer populations, but it’s looking less good for the rich ones. And we rich ones tend to like those big wild caught fish like tuna and swordfish, which also happen to be laced with mercury and industrial chemicals. So for those of us who eat lots of fish, should we choose wild or farmed fish? The answer might just be: eat less.

SOURCES

http://vitalsigns.worldwatch.org/vs-trend/fish-production-reaches-record
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2005/100095/index.html
http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/aquacult/overview.php
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1084135/
http://blastmagazine.com/the-magazine/technology/earth/2010/07/earthtalk-eating-fish-green-economy/

This year’s team is set at the skill positions with two-way stars John Kim at running back and Victor Mendez at receiver. A San Marcos insider expects junior Gabe Loza to unseat the two seniors ahead of him at quarterback by mid season. The veteran coaching staff of Jeff Hesselmeyer and Ed Holdren have a relatively young squad, but the Royals are poised to take home another City Championship in 2010.

Editor’s Updates: The Santa Barbara High School Dons impressively defeated the Channel Island Raiders 17 – 0. It’s the first win for off-campus coach Jaime Melgoza who received a Gatorade shower after the Dons victory. The Dos Pueblos Chargers went down to defeat in their home opener, losing 7-3 to the Righetti Warriors. The San Marcos Royals disappoint at home, falling to the Cabrillo Conquistadors 28-6.

Video preview of the 2010 San Marcos Royals football team.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video created by Presidio Sports

In the demolition zone where St. Francis Hospital once stood, a leaking underground fuel tank was recently unearthed from below the original boiler room. The 2,000-gallon steel riveted tank, believed to date back to the 1920s, was discovered by workers on the site on August 6, according to reports filed with the County of Santa Barbara.

The hospital is being demolished (pictured below) to make way for a 134-unit condominium project developed by Cottage Hospital.

Delayed Notification

The tank was removed from the ground by demolition workers without the required permits from the City and the County. The County was not informed about the leaking tank or the observations of contaminated soil below it until August 18. Hazardous waste specialists visited the site on August 19, when they opened a case file to investigate the unauthorized release of a hazardous substance and determine the scope of its clean-up.

“They should have put it back in the ground when they found it,” noted Jim Morris, an Underground Storage Tank inspector with the County, “and then they should have called us.”

Instead of notifying County officials immediately, as is protocol in such cases, representatives of Burke Advisors—the Construction Management team on site—arranged for Criterion Environmental, Inc. to collect soil samples and test for levels of contamination on behalf of an entity listed as Villa Riviera Real Estate Co., Inc. in care of PBCH Project Management (an entity not previously known to be associated with Cottage’s Workforce Housing Project).

According to the report issued by Criterion, the Ventura-based engineering firm collected those soil samples on August 6 at 11:15 a.m. That was the same morning that the construction firm states the tank was discovered, unearthed, moved, relocated and removed from the ground and from the cement encasing it.

The discovery and presence of the tank is not mentioned in the PEC’s daily field log on August 6, or on any other date until August 25 (pictured left), which states, “Underground storage tank to be analyzed by County Fire which will include soil samples.”

Weekly reports issued to the city on weeks ending August 6, 13 and 20 and signed by Dudek employee, John Cuykendall, Project Environmental Coordinator (PEC), fail to mention the tank, the contamination observed, or the soil testing conducted at the site. The discovery and removal of the leaking tank was not mentioned in the required weekly report to the City until September 1. That report notes, “On August 24, 2010, the PEC was informed by the Construction Manager that an approximate 2,000 gallon underground storage tank (UST) was discovered encased in concrete below the former Boiler Room adjacent to Salsipuedes Street by Standard Industries on August 6, 2010.”

According to the city planner assigned to Cottage’s condo project, Allison De Busk, she had no knowledge of the leaking fuel tank at the St. Francis site until August 27, when she learned that representatives of the contractor were seeking to obtain a permit to remove the tank.

“The breakdown in this case,” she speculated, “is that the construction manager didn’t believe this involved the Project Environmental Coordinator or the City, and made his first contact with the APCD.” [Air Pollution Control Board]

Levels of Contamination

According to the soils analysis issued by Criterion Environmental on August 13, the soil is too contaminated to be disposed of at Tajiguas Landfill or elsewhere in Santa Barbara County. The firm recommended that the soil be transported to “a hazardous materials landfill” outside the county.

The soil removed for testing at the St. Francis site contained what was described by engineers as “an oily like substance.” The test results reveal a TPH (Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon) Diesel Range of 6,900-8,000 ppm, considered a very high concentration.

The site assessment to determine the extent of the contamination will include excavation to a depth of 16 to 18 feet (as deep as a backhoe can dig), and several soil samples taken for analysis. Yet to be determined is where the contaminated soil, the tank and the sludgelike contents of the tank—which have been tested at 800,000 ppm—will end up.

The County Fire Department’s hazardous waste team will determine whether or not any additional actions are required after the site assessment. If there are additional actions, the public will have an opportunity to comment on the corrective action plan.

it’s time to halt all proposals to allow more oil drilling off our coasts—permanently.

And, the “environmental leaders” who gathered in April of this year to promote a revised PXP deal that would allow new offshore oil drilling off the coast of Santa Barbara County in exchange for a handful of financial concessions from a Texas oil company should hold a similar press conference to issue a public apology.

After the loud and contentious primary campaign, the race for the 35^th State Assembly seat currently held by Pedro Nava has gone very quiet as candidates Das Williams and Mike Stoker gear up for the post-Labor Day campaign for the November election. But there’s plenty of chatter going on behind the scenes…

Specifically, what happens to the make-up of the City Council if Williams wins. Local residents might want to consider the time frame mandated by the law.

According to the City Charter Section 503 on Vacancies: “A vacancy on the City Council, or in the Office of Mayor, from whatever cause arising other than expiration of term or the election of a member of the City Council to the Office of Mayor, shall be filled by appointment by the City Council within thirty (30) days of the occurrence of such vacancy unless it occurs less than one hundred (100) days before a general municipal election, in which case the office shall remain vacant until the election.”

Williams is well-within his rights to wait until learning the outcome of the election on November 2nd to resign his office if he wins or stay seated if he loses. But practically speaking, if he does win, the Santa Barbara City Council has to act fast in order to settle on an acceptable candidate within the 30-day time period shortened by the Veteran’s Day and Thanksgiving holidays.

But, if he wins and chooses not to resign until just before swearing in as an Assembly member (on December 5th), the City’s time-line would be foreshortened even more, since the scheduled end-of-the year furlough begins December 20^th, and there is no City Council meeting until January 11, 2011.

According to City Clerk Cynthia Rodriguez, only after the resignation of a Council member may interested individuals fill out the application as a qualified elector. Then there will be a series of interviews conducted in public by the City Council—at regular sessions or special sessions—and the public will have the opportunity to comment on behalf of anyone under consideration.

The successful candidate would have to gain a minimum of four out of six votes (Williams wouldn’t get to vote). And, there are plenty of Council wannabes from all over the political and experience spectrum making the rounds and making their case to members on the first politically divided Council in recent memory.

And residents should also be aware of the short and long-term implications of the new appointee on the make-up of City Council.

The new Council Member would take office immediately on a term that would expire in 2011. While some believe that Williams should be replaced with someone who holds the same progressive point of view, logic suggests that the more conservative members of the Council would never approve. We can only wonder who among us might be plucked from obscurity—or selected from the obvious candidates— after managing to convince at least four out of six Council Members he or she should be seated as a peer.

That appointment could hold tremendous power as a true swing vote—leading to much speculation on any number of curious questions. Should this appointment be:

• An avowed short-termer, a true community servant with no political ambition?
• A career boost to allow an incumbent to run for re-election?
• Awarded to a community member who has paid dues by serving on a variety of boards and commissions?
• A previous candidate for City Council who was not elected by the voters?
• A former elected or appointed official who has extra time to devote to the City?
• A well-informed citizen who has never run for office?
• Should the public have any input to the City Council Members who will be making this appointment?
• Should the public have the right to know who is lobbying for the job right now?

Sources close to City Hall suggest that among the hopefuls are former Mayor and current Planning Commissioner Sheila Lodge, as well as former Planning Commissioner and current Single Family Design Board member Bill Mahan—both as placeholders. Other names include most of the rest of the Planning Commission—John Jostes, Charmaine Jacobs, Michael Jordan and Deborah Schwartz—as well as former candidates for City Council Dianne Channing, John Thyne and Loretta Redd.

Of course, this whole exercise is moot if Mike Stoker wins, but worthy of consideration—and much open discussion between September and November—if Das moves on to state office, leaving city politics behind.

Known for her civic activism and insightful chronicles of the local scene, Cheri has a hard-won reputation for writing about issues that other Santa Barbara-based writers are reluctant to tackle.

“I’m delighted to add my perspective to the Santa Barbara View,” stated Cheri Rae. “My specialty is researching and revealing the untold stories of Santa Barbara and I look forward to sharing them with the site’s thoughtful audience.”

From 2007 to 2009, Cheri shared her unique citizen’s eye view of the region as a columnist for the Santa Barbara Daily Sound. In 2009, her work was recognized by the California Newspaper Publishers Association, which awarded her first-place honors in the Best Newspaper Column category.

Before concentrating on her writing, Cheri had a successful career as a magazine editor with stints at Surfer, Runner’s World and Bicycle Sport. In Santa Barbara, she served as editor for her own Olympus Press, publishing nature and outdoor recreation books as well as custom books.

Deftly covering both lively local issues and national ones, Cheri has contributed to most of the region’s magazines and newspapers, from the Los Angeles Times to the Santa Barbara Independent.

The Santa Barbara View is the region’s fastest growing website and Santa Barbara’s online home for information, commentary, and conversation. It’s a website for informed opinion writing and thoughtful analysis about the stories, events, and people that shape Santa Barbara. Daily posts are enhanced by an interactive and engaged online audience. www.sbview.com

Page through and sample a bit of nostalgic Santa Barbara, circa mid-Twentieth Century. Among the treats the menu offers: the Breakfast Special, Little Thin Hot Cakes with Syrup and Butter 30 cents; the Betty Co-Ed Salad (fruit, cheese and cream dressing with crackers) for 45 cents; the local favorite Abalone Steak dinner for $1.45 and homemade Banana Cream Pie for 20 cents.

The back page statement is worth savoring: “The Management and Personnel of the Blue Onion strive to offer you the finest in tasty, wholesome foods—promptly and courteously served. We solicit your suggestions as to how we may better serve you.”

(Photo: Michael Redmon, the Gledhill Library, Santa Barbara Historical Museum.)