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CSPA gearing up to defend the striped bass right to exist: CSPA needs donations NOW

June 19, 2008. The right to exist for the Delta Striped Bass may well be decided on July 14, 2008 when CSPA's attorney, Michael Jackson, appears before Judge Wanger in Federal District Court.

The actions are in response to a lawsuit filed by the Coalition for a Sustainable Delta et al against the California Department of Fish and Game and Fish and Game Commission (hereinafter DFG).  The Coalition is largely comprised of Kern County water agencies.  

That 29 January 2008 lawsuit accuses the DFG of threatening the existence of endangered salmon and Delta smelt through DFG’s striped bass management program.  It alleges that striped bass prey on salmon, steelhead and Delta smelt and that predation has illegally contributed to the catastrophic crash of pelagic and salmonid species populations over the last five years.  It also alleges fishing regulations established by the Fish and Game Commission results in the take of listed species by striped bass.

If the suit by the water agencies is successful, it could result in all restrictions on the take of striped bass being eliminated including method of take, minimum size and number of fish taken. The lack of these regulations would be the death knell to the already beleaguered species which at one time was thought to number as many as nine million and whose current population is believed to be about 350,00 adults.

The suit is expected to be a costly one and, even if CSPA wins, no cash judgment in the organizations favor will be forthcoming. That means that CSPA will have to fight the suit with out of pocket funds which are meager to say the least.

CSPA needs donations NOW to keep this suit going. Businesses, organizations and individuals are all encouraged to join CSPA in this fight by becoming a member and donating the maximum they can afford to keep this issue before the court.

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