Respect Bodega Bay – washing boats and growing shellfish at Spud Point Marina

Click the words above “Respect Bodega Bay – growing shellfish at Spud Point Marina???” to see this entire post.

California has between 840 and 3,400 miles of coastline, depending on how you calculate it.

Point Reyes Seashore and Tomales Bay keep me plenty busy with places to remove the trash we humans cover the planet with.

Crab gear makes up a large percentage of what I find on the beaches of Point Reyes. Based on the orange tags attached to the crab pots, it is easy to determine the ports of call for the boats losing the gear I find all over our local beaches.

Bodega Bay, San Francisco and Half Moon Bay are the top three ports in this area.

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Commercial crab trap tags. Recognize anyone you know? I do.

Commercial crab trap tags. Recognize anyone you know? I do.

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The past couple of years I’ve been visiting Spud Point and Porto Bodega Marinas within Bodega Bay, to have a look around and see what I can learn about the businesses that leave such a mess on our beaches.

Last year I witnessed boats being sanded with electric sanders as they sat in the water. No effort whatsoever being made to contain the paint and wood dust dropping into the water. I also saw boats being painted, as they sat in the water.

The very same water where seed oysters are grown for human consumption by the hundreds of thousands. Few people are likely aware that a local business operates two “floating-upwelling systems” or flupsy tanks to raise seed oysters at the docks of Spud Point Marina. These systems pump the soap & oil contaminated marina water up through the oysters to keep them oxygenated. Once they grow large enough to be placed in grow-out bags, these oysters are then relocated to Tomales Bay to grow to market size.

A couple weeks ago, I happened to be at Spud Point enjoying pastries & coffee from Tomales Bakery on the bench overlooking the marina. Nearby, fishermen were washing their boats with soapy water and brushes with huge amounts of bubbles all over the marina. I wondered how often this happens?

The amount of soap being dumped into the bay by one boat in particular was shocking.

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Later I contacted the harbor master and asked about this activity in the water, especially given that shellfish for human consumption were being grown in the very same water nearby.

A few days later, I was told by the Sonoma County Parks people:

“I like to recommend our customers use “A boat soap” which is intended to be less harmful to the environment and only then in quantizes [sic] needed. The fishermen always seem to use dish soap while the recreational boater is more likely to use the boat soap to clean their vessel and equipment (In my opinion this has more to do with price.) [Hmmm, I wonder what price to put on the damage being done to the very environment these fishermen depend on?] After double checking with the United State Coast Guard Sector SF and their Pollution Response Team I did confirm again today using dish soap to clean their vessel and fishing equipment is an acceptable practice.

I find this quite disturbing. What do you readers think?

I’ve asked about why there is no hoist at this very busy marina. A hoist to haul boats out of the bay for needed repairs in an environmentally sensitive way.

I was told the following by the Sonoma County Parks people:

“It was removed well over a dozen years ago when the “haul out” contractor closed down their business. Analysis at that time indicated that there was not enough demand to make it a going concern. A haul out dock needs dry land space to work on boats and the property across the street (that had been used in the past) is too expensive to rent. We have been told by the previous contractor that the real problem is a lack of affordable dry land space to work on boats. Even if the land across the street was more affordable it would still require a significant investment (250,000) in the haul out equipment.”

Seems like a viable fishery needs this critical infrastructure to support wise, environmentally conscious boat maintenance.

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Here are some images from that day, showing the suds in the water.

Followed by images of the same marina, Spud Point, showing the fuel/oil coating the surface of the bay.

The same bay thousands of animals call home.

The same bay being used to grow oysters for human consumption.

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As always, click on an image to see a larger version.

Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the boat at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Washing down the deck at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the deck at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Washing down the deck at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Washing down the deck at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

soap suds at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Here are images of the water surface, showing the colorful sheen left by oil & fuel.

There are lots of things I don’t know about growing oysters.

Maybe soap and fuel are exactly what oysters need to thrive…

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As always, click on an image to see a larger version.

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina,  Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina,  Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina,  Bodega Bay ©Richard James - coastodian.org

Oily sheen on the water at Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay
©Richard James – coastodian.org

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Duncan MacLean, please stop wrecking fishing boats

Click on the title of this post to read it and see a related header image.

I just now sent the following message to Zeke Grader by email. I hope he is able to keep Mr. MacLean from wrecking any more boats along our coast.

Mr. Grader is the Executive Director of THE PACIFIC COAST FEDERATION
OF FISHERMEN’S ASSOCIATIONS, and, as I understand it, a long time friend of Duncan MacLean.

Hello Mr. Zeke Grader,

I’d like to relate to you my day, so that you will do everything you can to stop Duncan MacLean from ever captaining another fishing boat.

It is 9 pm and I just stepped out of the shower and my eyes are still burning from the fuel that coated me today as I wrestled in the surf with the remains of the fishing vessel Sea Biscuit, captained by Duncan MacLean.

Yesterday I received word that help was needed to remove debris from Pinnacle Beach near Bodega Bay. A fishing boat had wrecked and people wanted to clear the beach before the holiday weekend.

I drove up around 3 pm, signed in with the Surfrider people and hiked down onto the beach. My large pack full of wetsuit, booties, mud boots, bags for debris.

For an hour or two I ferried loads around a rock point so that a truck could come get them. 20-30 others did the same.

Then, as the tide became low enough, along with a dozen others, I pulled all manner of cables, fuel lines, electronics, hull pieces, fishing line from the surf. All of it coated with fuel.

I am told a helicopter will be on site next week to extract the engine, fuel tanks and other large items.

For a week now, dozens of people have cleaned up after Mr. MacLean, AGAIN!

I was witness to the results of his grounding of the Barbara Faye on 12 May at Limantour Beach in Point Reyes National Seashore. That cost the NPS over $80,000 of tax payer money. The coast guard, fish & game and others paid too. The fuel was pumped off the boat that time, I heard at a cost of over $20,000. This time, the fuel leaked into the sea. I saw the colorful sheen on the water, I feel it stinging my eyes as I type this.

Mr. MacLean walks away, maybe handing out a dead salmon to those that give him shelter or a ride. He carries no insurance, expecting others to clean up after him. He usually fishes alone for days at a time, see below for an idea of how he manages to stay awake for so long by himself.

This is the second boat Mr MacLean has grounded at Point Reyes. His first was near the same spot at Limantour in 2000.

I heard today that he has wrecked 4, maybe 5 boats in his time. I also heard that he has a drug problem. I spent 30 seconds searching the internet and came up with the article seen on the enclosed image.

The other images are from the 12 May, 2012 grounding of the Barbara Faye at Limantour.

You know this man Mr. Grader.

Please do what you can to make sure he can never do this again.

We can find other ways to buy a salmon.

He can find other ways to earn a living.

Our planet cannot endure more of his irresponsible actions.

Clearly, piloting fishing boats is not his forté.

Thank you for your time.

Richard James
Coastodian.org

Barbara Faye, the second time Duncan crashed a boat by this name on Limantour beach.

300 gallons of fuel that was pumped off the boat at great expense.

56 king salmon being hauled off the beach.

Some more images, these from Friday 31 August, 2012 as volunteers cleanup more from the wake of skipper Duncan MacLean.

And here is a link to many images showing the hard work citizens put in to clean up after Duncan.

Cea Higgins of Sonoma Coast Surfrider