Fifty percent of the U.S. population lives in coastal regions. In Ventura County, almost 50 percent of the County's residents live in communities within 10 minutes of the beach. The beach is part of our group identity and gives us the opportunity to relax and enjoy being a Californian, regardless of socio-economic status.

But the edge of the ocean means more than just a beautiful place. It is also a major engine of the California economy. First of all, the coast attracts huge numbers of visitors and vacationers who choose to spend their time and money near the ocean. According to the California Trade and Commerce office, the state's economy derives $55.2 billion annually, and more than 20 percent of that is directly related to coastal activities.

California's fertile coastal plains, where year-round temperatures are moderated by the cooling effect of the ocean in summer and its warming effect in winter, produce as many as six crops a year. Here are produced many of the fresh fruits and vegetables that feed the whole nation all year long.

California has the world's fifth largest economy and its ports are the focal points of international trade. The import and export of goods at these ports creates high paying jobs for pilots and longshoremen, as well as opportunities for numerous businesses engaged in international trade, such as freight forwarders, customs brokers and import/export entrepreneurs.

From a military perspective, the coast has to be defended. Federal defense expenditures to maintain coastal military bases bring huge economic benefits to the state as a whole, and especially to communities near those bases.

But our coast faces many challenges, mostly environmental. Thanks to the Clean Water Act, overall coastal water quality is improving through improved sewage treatment methods, but much has yet to be done. Only 10 percent of California's original coastal wetlands remain. They perform critical functions such as dispersing flood waters, preventing erosion, protecting water quality, recharging ground water and preventing salt water intrusion into fresh water supplies. They are also the nurseries for many fish species that need the safety of the wetlands to grow large enough to survive in the hazardous ocean environment. Both our commercial and sport-fishing industries depend on healthy fish stocks. Wetlands are essential to the survival of migrating birds that depend on them as resting spots and nesting sites on their long annual migrations. They are equally important to hundreds of resident bird species that live in or near them year-round. According to the 2001 National Survey on Recreation and the Environment, bird-watching has become the fastest-growing outdoor activity in the U.S., second only to gardening in popularity.

Disappearing beaches has become a major problem. Damming of rivers for flood control, hydro-electricity and fresh water resources impede the natural beach sand replenishment processes. This is further exacerbated by seas walls that cause beach erosion. Without replenishment, our beaches are eroding unnaturally, damaging tourism as well as recreational opportunities.

The lack of marine reserves is also a problem in this age of declining fish stocks. Commercial fishermen may complain about laws protecting marine reserves in the short term, but long term, it's the only way to protect their investments and way of life.

Another potential problem is the proposed liquid natural gas (LNG) terminals in several coastal communities in California, including two in Ventura County. While natural gas has numerous environmental advantages over diesel fuel for generating electricity, LNG tankers and terminals, either onshore or off, present a new set of environmental impacts and safety issues that must be considered with utmost care.

The California Coastal Commission successfully defeated the most recent effort to open new oil leases in California waters. We know from the effects of the Santa Barbara oil spill almost 35 years ago how devastating an oil spill can be to California.

The price of a clean and healthy coast is eternal vigilance. Because of the ramped population growth and the fact that coastal property values are so much higher than those inland, development pressures on the coast will become ever greater as the amount of undeveloped coastal property diminishes. Our efforts to protect the still-wild coastal spaces for the benefit of all California species, human and nonhuman, must increase correspondingly.

It's evident that the troubled state budget and even bond monies approved under Proposition 50 for the purchase of parklands will not be adequate to save the important coastal spaces that need to be saved. This puts a further burden on land trusts like the Western Alliance for Nature to fill the gap. Private action supported by community activism is needed more than ever to rescue the coastal lands under developmental siege into the safe harbor of public ownership. I encourage everyone to support your local land trusts as well as regional conservation organizations on this critical endeavor to save California's signature natural resources for all future generations.

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