Caulerpa now illegal in Kalifornia??

[jrodzen]

Hi all

I saw a press release today from the California Dept of Fish and Game that you are no longer allowed to possess any of the Caulerpa species within the state of Kalifornia. Supposedly, it may bring up to a $10,000 fine if you are caught with it, and you may not import it into the state. It is unclear how they will enforce this since the agency acknowledged that there are over 150 aquarium shops in the bay area alone, though they mentioned they recently intercepted and seized a shipment of Caulerpa to a southern California wholesaler. If I can find the actual press release tomorrow in my work email I will post it on this listserve.
Just remember, your government knows what's best for you.

 

[danmhippo]

(lips sealed)

 

[chris_h]

I have never heard of Kalifornia.

 

[IBJJ]

it was a freaky movie about a serial killer wasn't it?

 

[tazdevil]

I believe they actually have a good reason for this one though. I had heard about this in a prior thread that someone had dumped their tanks, with caulerpa in it, into the ocean and a massive bloom had resulted. This is one of those cases where the "cure" was drasticly overdone because one idiot decided to dump their tanks without thinking about potential consequences. Hence, the govt. got involved and will punish everyone to prevent another episode like this. I can't remember the thread that went into this, but it was only a month or two ago.

 

[jrodzen]

Hey all

Ahhh, found the link to the press release from the CA DFG:

"DFG Alerts Aquarium Owners of Dangerous Threat to California Sea Life"

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/news01/01105.html

I saw it come across my email earlier today. I personally think it is another case of gov't overkill and it seems they desire to find yet another way to bring in revenue to the state coffers via fines. But to each their own opinion...
Of course, enforcement is going to be nearly impossible and I don't anticipate a "Caulerpa police" going door to door anytime soon.

 

[Mouse]

Hippo, you make me laugh man. maybe you could start pusing it at your local LFS, whack out $10 bags.

 

[Bill2]

I believe the ban goes into effect Jan 1. I also don't think they are going to go on a Caulerpa hunt. The probably just want Fish and Game and Wildlife service to watch out for importation of the stuff. Also, blaming the infestation if you want to call it that on an aquarist has never been proven and the rumor of someone dumping a ton of it in the ocean thus causing the "infestation" is outright ridiculous. I believe www.reefsource.com has all the details.

Bill Crockett

 

[jrodzen]

Makes me wonder what is next. Ban the importation and sale of live rock 'cause it might have Caulerpa spores or tiny plants, or require anyone who buys it to register themselves into a state database?
Probably not, but all of us in the hobby in the Peoples' Republic of Kalifornia need to stick together on this one (insert picture of Charlton Heston holding a piece of Caulerpa in his hands....).

 

[danmhippo]

Thank God, Prolifera is not on the list. That will be the only thing I can keep from now on, other than the florida mangrove.

(need to make more trips to other LFS to sell off my racemosa's)

 

[danmhippo]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Mouse:
<strong>Hippo, you make me laugh man. maybe you could start pusing it at your local LFS, whack out $10 bags.

</strong><hr></blockquote>

Shhhhhhh, someone just did that yesterday!!!

(post edited to protect innocent)

[ November 30, 2001: Message edited by: danmhippo ]</p>

 

[Anonymous]

In the true kalifornia spirit of banning things, the following Caulerpa species are no longer legal to own, transport, etc: taxifolia, cupressoides, mexicana, sertulariodes, floridana, ashmeadii, racemosa, verticillata, and scapelliformis.

AB 1334 "Killer Algae" Chartered Bill Text

The "k" in "kalifornia" originated with the gun owners here who have been recently besieged by the some of the most ridiculous laws in the land. Usually used right after the words "Peoples' Republic of." These laws are brought to us by the same people who unsuccessfully deregulated the utility industry and attempted to ban the entire Caulerpa genus rather than go through the simple effort of choosing the problematic species.

Ty

 

[Anemone]

Yes, possession of specified species of Caulerpa algae is now illegal (not January 1st). For a discussion of the reasons, you can check here: http://www.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=da291d247a51418d2bfe4d9975ee45fd&threadid=22116&highlight=caulerpa+ban

But, for those that care, here is the real deal......

CALIFORNIA CODES
FISH AND GAME CODE
SECTION 2300


2300. (a) No person shall sell, possess, import, transport,
transfer, release alive in the state, or give away without
consideration the salt water algae of the Caulerpa species:
taxifolia, cupressoides, mexicana, sertulariodes, floridana,
ashmeadii, racemosa, verticillata, and scapelliformis.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a person may possess, for
bona fide scientific research, as determined by the department, upon
authorization by the department, the salt water algae of the Caulerpa
species: taxifolia, cupressoides, mexicana, sertulariodes,
floridana, ashmeadii, racemosa, verticillata, and scapelliformis.
(c) In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any person
who violates this section is subject to a civil penalty of not less
than five hundred dollars ($500) and not more than ten thousand
dollars ($10,000) for each violation.

Kevin

 

[SaltJunkey]

Hi all,

Hmmn strange. How do they intend to regulate the ballast of ships that could possibly be carrying these deadly strains of caulpera. As we all know ships have ballast so they remain stable. OMG a ship could fill it's ballast in Australia, accidently pick up some of this algae, and dump it into the waters of California. We must take action now! We have to make it illegal to have any water in a ships ballast tanks, and if these ships refuse to comply with our orders we must ban them from reaching federal waters! To insure that rogue ships are not able to reach our shores to dump their water we should set up anti-ship missiles along the coast.
You know it's really to convient to blame California's caulpera problems on aquarist. It is just as likely that this macroalgae that has caused these problems came in on the ballast of a ship. Grrr