Drakes Estero Triptych – cleanup continues

Click the words above “Drakes Estero Triptych – Cleanup continues” to see this entire post.

17 September is Coastal Cleanup Day in California (as well as many other places around the globe).

Drakes Estero is getting a much deserved sprucing up with the removal of 5 lineal miles of treated wood racks that have been there for many decades. Tons of live and dead oysters, clams, plastic tubes of various sizes, plastic bags, lumber and other detritus from the oyster farm still on the bottom of Drakes Estero will also be removed so that the Estero can return to a more natural, unencumbered part of the global ecosystem.

The piles of lumber seen below are from a little less than 10 racks that have been removed so far.

There are over 90 racks total to remove.

This wood is drying in the sun to reduce the weight to be hauled to special dump sites which allow toxic material.

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Click here to read more about the oyster farming operation that last farmed oysters in Drakes Estero.

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Sustainable Oyster Farming, DBOC style – Stewardship concluded, thankfully

Please click the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming, DBOC style ….” to see this entire post.

Happy new year.

1 January came around and I had no choice but to go enjoy the first day of an unimproved Estero.

The first thing to catch one’s eye is the new sign out on SFD….

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Here is an image of this same spot on 24 Feb., 2013
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Driving down to the put-in, the empty parking-lot surprised me, not another boater out enjoying this auspicious new year.

There was a large truck poised to haul out another load of stewardship.

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Unloading my boat, odd specks in the water caught my eye.

Remains of a barge DBOC crushed into pieces while in the Estero so they could remove it. Too bad they left thousands of pieces of foam to further pollute The Estero.

Remains of a barge DBOC crushed into pieces while in the Estero so they could remove it. Too bad they left thousands of pieces of foam to further pollute The Estero.


Wow, it looked as if they had destroyed one of their barges and left the shards of foam as one last gift.

After putting my boat in the water and paddling around to photograph the mess, the truck driver on-shore informed me that they had indeed crushed a barge into pieces so they could lift it out of the water.

He then asked me if I could fetch the large wooden piece of barge still floating in The Estero and bring it to him so he could take care of that. I said sure and paddled over to it, threw a leg over it and paddled to shore dragging what must have weighed a few hundred pounds. He thanked me, as did I him.

After reading the comments made by one of the managers of DBOC at the “wake” held Saturday in Point Reyes Station, “The company, which also raised Manilla clams, has removed every oyster from the water in compliance with the terms of the settlement, according to Ginny Cummings, the farm’s manager.

We have taken anything out and with as much care as we always used in our operations,” Cummings said.”,

I can confirm that the same care was used in dismantling the operation as was used in running it.

As I returned from my short boating excursion, paddling against the strong ebb tide, thousands upon thousands of chunks of foam drifted with the tide, towards the mouth of The Estero. I picked up a few dozen of the larger pieces as I hurried ashore to meet a dear friend who was coming to visit.

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Thankfully, the variety of stewardship practiced by The Drakes Bay Oyster Company, and their workers for the past 30+ years will no longer impact a landscape that needs no improving whatsoever.

The grebes seen below can once again be grebes, unencumbered by the deep respect of DBOC.

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


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apologies for low quality iphone video of the mess



apologies for low quality iphone video of the mess


Horned Grebe

Horned Grebe


Eared Grebe

Eared Grebe

Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – part 8 crime scene video

Click the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming…” to see this entire post.

Below you will find a video composed of 48 minutes of footage I recorded on 13 October while diving under 8 oyster racks in Schooner Bay.

Be sure to click the rectangle icon in the lower right of the video window to fill your screen with this HD footage.

Skip around to see the variety of messes left on the floor of The Estero by DBOC. Or grab a beer and some snacks and sit back to watch the whole thing. That way you can get a better idea of the scope of the damage at what truly is a crime scene.

Thankfully, next year no further damage will be done and the clean-up can begin in earnest.

The diving recorded here shows a portion of 1/10th of the racks being left in Drakes Estero by DBOC.



See the next post in this series here

Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – part 7 Stewardship in Home Bay

Click the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming…” to see this entire post. In particular, the banner image that shows two of the miles of racks in Drakes Estero, upon which I have placed several plastic bags filled with oyster shells that I found on the bottom, directly below the where they sit in this image.

Earlier this month I spent a few hours recording the mess left behind by DBOC under the oyster racks in Home Bay.

No surprises, simply more of the same disgraceful mess left behind by a firm that repeatedly touted itself as a steward of the land, with deep respect for the waters of The Estero.

Below is three brief minutes from hours of video I recorded.

Be sure to click the small rectangular icon in the lower right corner of the video window so you can see this HD footage fill up your screen. That way you’ll have a better idea of how the floor of Drakes Estero is filled with the remnants of a farce, foisted on us all as the model of sustainable farming.


See the next post in this series here

Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – You think you’re doing something good….

Click on the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style ….” to see this entire post.

Lately I’ve been boating and diving various areas of Drakes Estero in order to get a handle on how enormous of a mess is being left by Drakes Bay Oyster Company. I assure you, it is a disaster out there. For them to suggest that the cleanup cost would be only $10,000 (which they did, more than once), is one mighty big whopper!

After diving under 8 long racks today, over one half mile of lineal rack space, I put up my sail and let the wind drive me back to the put in near the oyster processing facility.

As I pulled my boat out of the water, the manager of DBOC approached me, saying she had a couple questions she’d like to ask me. I said sure.

“We’ve been trying to figure out who is putting the tubes [french tubes] up on top of the racks.”

“That would likely be me.” I replied

“Well, there are live oysters on those tubes, and when you do that, it kills the oysters.”

“The tubes I’ve placed on the racks are from the mud on the bottom of The Estero.”

“We don’t want you to do that. We are still harvesting oysters, and that is like stealing from us.”

“Those oysters have been abandoned on the bottom of The Estero, they are not on the racks. I’m cleaning up the mess out there that you folks refuse to clean up.”

“What you are doing would be like me taking your boat and putting it in my car,” she said to me.

I will digress for a moment to correct her remark, given all that has transpired over the past almost two years.

She thinks that my picking up the mess that DBOC has been leaving in Drakes Estero for the past six and a half years or so, is like her stealing my kayak.

Sure, that is correct, if:

1 I signed a contract with a landlord to lease a place to store my kayak and was told that after 7 years, I could no longer store my kayak there.

2 During the lease, I enlisted the help of all manner of politicians, lobbyists and other groups to put pressure on the landlord to extend my lease.

3 At the end of my lease, the “home-owners association” that my landlord belonged to told me my lease would not be extended.

4 I sued the landlord and HOA. The court hearing the case rejected my claim.

5 I appealed my case to a higher court, they too, rejected my case.

6 I appealed my case to the entire bench of said higher court, they rejected my claim.

7 I appealed my claim to the Supreme Court of the United States, they refused to hear my case.

8 Lots of my buddies sued on my behalf, trying to get my lease to store my kayak extended. That case was tossed out, my buddies were scolded.

9 For the nearly 2 years I was fighting against the lease I signed, I continued to store my kayak, yet did not pay rent. And I earned income renting out my kayak to others.

And then, I ran my kayak through a shredder and left all the pieces scattered about the place I had leased.

Yeah, I can see how my picking up the abandoned mess left by DBOC is just like her stealing my kayak.

Now back to the conclusion of our exchange today…

“I’ll stop placing tubes on top of the racks”, I said.

“Are you going to pick up all the live oysters from off the bottom?” I asked her.

“We are still harvesting oysters and will continue to do so.”

“You didn’t answer my question. Are you going to pick up all the live oysters off the bottom of The Estero?”

“We are going to keep harvesting until they kick us out. After December 31, you can do whatever you want.”

“You still haven’t answered my question. I’m gonna stop placing french tubes on top of the racks, are you going to pick up all the live oysters off the bottom of The Estero?” I asked for a third time.

“Yes we will.”

Great! Then I won’t have to pick them up.

Her last words to me were, “You seem to think you are doing something good out there.”

Later, I thought to myself, “yeah, I’m showing some respect to Drakes Estero, something DBOC is good at talking about, and not so good at actually doing.

Below are images from what I saw today. They represent a fraction of the disaster left by DBOC on the bottom of Drakes Estero.

All images ©Richard James and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.

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


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See the next post in this series here

Whose job is it anyhow….?

Click the words above “Whose job is it anyhow….?” to see this entire post.

Can anyone tell me whose job is it to ensure that the mess left by The Drakes Bay Oyster Company gets cleaned up?

I’ve asked people at the California Coastal Commission, Department of Fish & Wildlife and the National Park Service this very question. Twice!

I’ve not heard a peep from anyone, after nearly two weeks.

It seems important to find out whose job it is. In the past, when oyster leases changed hands in West Marin, or operations shut down, big messes get left – see images below.

All those years profits being made, and every time, the earth gets left holding the [grow-out]bag, [polyethylene]tube, [nylon]rope, [PVC]pipe, zip-tie etc….

As always, click on a picture to see a larger version.

Sustainable oyster farming, West Marin style. Click image to see larger version.

Sustainable oyster farming, West Marin style.
Click image to see larger version.


Above is what Charlie Johnson (and now Kevin Lunny) want to gift to the planet.
No thanks, please clean up YOUR mess.

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Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company

Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company

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Thousands of feral non-native oysters left growing in Drakes Estero by DBOC

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Some of the hundreds, likely thousands of “french tubes” left to rot on the floor of Drakes Estero by DBOC.

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Some of the hundreds, likely thousands of “french tubes” left to rot on the floor of Drakes Estero by DBOC.

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Some of the hundreds, likely thousands of “french tubes” left to rot on the floor of Drakes Estero by DBOC.

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One string of oysters covered with non-native, invasive tunicate D. vexilium. There are many dozens, possibly hundreds more just like this, left in Drakes Estero by DBOC.

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Above are iron oyster racks, likely from Drew Alden, left in the southern Tomales Bay lease now operated by Todd Friend at TBOC.
No thanks, please clean up YOUR mess.

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abandoned plastic trays - Tomales Bay Oyster Company

abandoned plastic trays – Tomales Bay Oyster Company


Above was left when Drew Alden sold his lease to Todd Friend over 5 years ago.
Why is this mess still disgracing Tomales Bay?

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abandoned grow out bags covered with marine growth - Tomales Bay Oyster Company

abandoned grow out bags covered with marine growth – Tomales Bay Oyster Company


Above was left when Drew Alden sold his lease to Todd Friend over 5 years ago.
Why is this mess still disgracing Tomales Bay?

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Location -  38.128490° N   -122.864172° W   Datum WGS84

Location – 38.128490° N -122.864172° W Datum WGS84


Not sure who so generously left this mess in Tomales Bay.
No thanks, please clean up YOUR mess.

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On the eastern shore of Tomales Bay, north of Walker Creek you’ll find this mess from oyster operations begun and abruptly ended decades ago.
Why is this mess still disgracing Tomales Bay?

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On the eastern shore of Tomales Bay, north of Walker Creek you’ll find this mess from oyster operations begun and abruptly ended decades ago.
Why is this mess still disgracing Tomales Bay?

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On the eastern shore of Tomales Bay, north of Walker Creek you’ll find this mess from oyster operations begun and abruptly ended decades ago.
Why is this mess still disgracing Tomales Bay?

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If people want to make an honest buck farming oysters, that is fine by me. It is hard work, no question about that. But, taking shortcuts, short-sighted business practices and just plain arrogance has been trashing the planet.

The disgraceful disaster scattered on the bottom of the thousand acre lease of precious Drakes Estero is at zero to ten feet below sea level usually.

We now have an opportunity to see the stewards of the land, with a deep respect for the waters of Drakes Estero show us just how deep their respect is.

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Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – part 5 DBOC trash in Drakes Estero, director’s cut

Click the words above, “Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style…” to see this entire post.

Due to popular demand, a shorter version of the staggeringly popular seven minute film showing the garbage left behind by the Drakes Bay Oyster Company has been released.

See below for the distilled three minute version.

Be sure to click the rectangle icon in lower right of video window to fill your screen with the image.


See the next post in this series here

Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – part 4 DBOC – Stewardship examined

Click on the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style…” to see this entire post

Sunday the 20th found me out on Drakes Estero on a superb day to enjoy this wilderness jewel. A light south headwind on my paddle out made for a light tailwind, coupled with a strong flood tide to push me back after a day diving to see what lay beneath the surface.

Having replaced my polarized glasses I’d broken two years ago, this was my first time boating on The Estero with the ability to easily see underwater. An amazing world of kelp, eal-grass, nudibranchs, bat rays, leopard sharks, fish and crabs all went about their business of eating, trying not to be eaten and reproducing.

Sadly, after years of use by a “Sustainable, respectful of the land oyster farm”, the Estero floor is now littered with abandoned plastic, oyster shells and lumber treated with toxic chemicals.

Thankfully, Drakes Bay Oyster Company has a “deep respect for the land and waters of the Estero ecostystem”.

Just imagine what the place would look like if some company without such strong morals had been running the show…..

Below is a 7 minute view of Drakes Estero, below the surface. It is High Definition, so click the small rectangle in the lower right corner of the video window to fill your screen, especially nice when the large shark comes into view.

While not the best footage (drifting with the tide holding a camera on a pole), it does give an accurate representation of what, sadly, is found under many of the oyster racks encroaching on The Estero.

As my camera skills develop, I plan to venture out to the northern part of Tomales Bay and share equally disturbing views of the side-effects from years of resource extraction in those waters.


See the next post in this series here

Sustainable Oyster Farming, West Marin Style – part 3 DBOC, Stewards of the land

Click on the words above “Sustainable Oyster Farming…” to see this entire post.

NOTE: Those of you that come back to this page again and again, please consider adding a thoughtful comment. This page is meant to stimulate public discourse on the situation at hand.

July 1st was the first day to go boating on Drakes Estero since the closure to protect Harbor Seals began on March 1st. I had not been out there since February and really wanted to go visit this special place again. On July 6th I took my boat and cameras out to visit the same oyster racks I described in an earlier post here.

I wanted to see if any clean-up had been done since my last visit.

The location of the two oyster racks I visited are just outside the mouth of Home Bay and can be seen in the image below.

Click the image to see a larger version.

Home Bay Oyster Racks Map

The first rack I dove near was nearly half occupied with “french tubes”, long white tubes upon which oysters grow directly. The other half of the rack was partially occupied with the older style “black spacer tubes” [see a pile of over 5000 of these tubes I picked up on Point Reyes Beaches here], and partially devoid of tubes of any kind.

What I saw on the bottom under the french tube area shocked me, it was worse than I imagined. I pulled from the bottom, 136 french tubes, all of which were devoid of oysters, but a fraction of what is down there.

Below are still images and a video of what I saw.

Those tasked with cleaning up the mess of the Drakes Bay Oyster Company have their work cut out for them. Each tube I dug out of the mud clouded the water instantly, reducing visibility to nearly zero. In a little over 3 hours, I collected the 136 tubes from under half of one rack, and I estimate 60-70 tubes from under only 20 lineal feet of the adjacent rack. Even with dive gloves on, my fingers bled again and again from the numerous cuts caused by razor sharp oyster shells.

I was unable to load the other 60-70 tubes on my boat, as they were encrusted with mostly dead oysters. I stacked those on top of the racks above where I found them in the mud.

60-70 “french tubes” left on floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes Bay Oyster Company

60-70 “french tubes” left on floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes Bay Oyster Company


click on image to see larger version

Drakes Bay Oyster Company left these in Drakes Estero

Drakes Bay Oyster Company left these in Drakes Estero


click on image to see larger version

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click on image to see larger version

Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company

Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company


click on image to see larger version

Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company

Oyster farming trash left on the floor of Drakes Estero by Drakes bay Oyster Company


click on image to see larger version

Didemnum vexillum. invasive tunicate growing on a suspended oyster growing device called a french tube.

Didemnum vexillum. invasive tunicate growing on a suspended oyster growing device called a french tube.


click on image to see larger version

Didemnum vexillum. invasive tunicate growing on a suspended oyster growing device called a french tube.

Didemnum vexillum. invasive tunicate growing on a suspended oyster growing device called a french tube.


See the next post in this series here

Cert. denied – Looking forward to an Estero without miles of racks, plastic bags

Click on the words above “Cert. denied” to see this entire post.

The supreme court issued their orders this morning.

On the list of cases denied a hearing, Drakes Bay Oyster Company.

Now to get DBOC to clean up the mess they bought/created along with the lease.

Let’s hope they break with what seems to be the tradition of the oyster industry and actually do the right thing and clean up the mess they made while making a profit from the public waters of the State of California.

Read about other local oyster growers and the mess they either created, bought, continue to create or are beginning to clean up, here, here, here and here.

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