1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

You make decisions on behalf of 39.4 million people who have chosen you to represent them, and on behalf of billions of animals who have no choice but to let you. Along the 840 miles of California coast, there are countless communities reliant on the protections we provide or deny them. I ask you to consider what the often-unseen life along the coasts does for you, for the planet, and for your children as you weigh the decisions the current administration puts in front of you.  Under nearshore waters, hidden from view by gleaming whitecaps and playful pelicans, lay grassy marine meadows easily taken for granted. Eelgrass, common in coastal communities in California, is a vital habitat for crabs, clams, and juvenile fish such as salmon, and an essential stabilizer against erosion. Additionally, seagrasses like eelgrass serve to absorb not only excess nutrients coming from agricultural runoff, but also atmospheric carbon, accounting for 10% of the carbon sequestration by the world’s oceans despite only occupying 1% of the ocean’s surface. Excessive predation of eelgrass meadows by invasive species, such as the European green crab and Pacific purple sea urchin, causes a decrease in commercially viable fishing along with destabilized coastlines and less natural mitigation of carbon emissions.  Luckily, eelgrass meadows have natural protectors: sea otters. Once ranging from Oregon to Baja California, the southern sea otter now resides only on the central coast, and their impact is obvious. Sea otters prey on many of the intermediate herbivores in these coastal communities, allowing eelgrass meadows to recover and thrive once again.  The southern sea otter was first declared as endangered in 1977 by the Fish and Wildlife Service after hunting in the early 20th century reduced their population in California to just 50 individuals. This classification, under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, established protections that have allowed for the population to grow, but as disasters such as oil spills continue to threaten the species’ recovery, they are still a long way from being delisted.  Without the seagrass meadows these otters protect, there would be no more Dungeness crab or delicious salmon on your lunch menu, and the coast underneath those new beachfront homes would be destabilized. Without seagrass as a nutrient and carbon sink, coastal ecosystems won’t be viable for much longer, and ocean warming will continue to accelerate.  California boasts 124 marine protected areas, more than any other state in the country. The life that exists along our coastline is invaluable, and damage done now is irreversible. Before signing off on a new offshore drilling platform or a proposal for new oceanfront construction, consider what it means to those living beneath the surface, and all that they provide to you. You have a say in whether we empower or dismantle the safety of our coastal ecosystems; use it wisely.