I would like to offer my understanding on the Pismo clam rebound and provide an alternative to its last great population shrinkage, which some say was caused by the sea otter’s return (“Clams disappeared from Pismo Beach because of sea otters,” Oct. 13). Experts seemed puzzled that the oldest of the rebounded clams are 10 years old, being unaware of the history of the South County Water Treatment Plant. Ten years ago, a new operation team was given the contract for operation. The previous company operated the facility using heavy chemical dosage; the new team restored it to its designed biological organism procedure. Within a year, I noticed a rebound of the sand crab population along Oceano’s beach.
When the sea otters returned, this water treatment facility had recently expanded. Its outfall was not long enough to spew waste far enough to leave nearshore waters, thus pollutants found their way to filter feeders. Also, the facility was not designed to process pharmaceuticals, household cleaning chemicals, industrial chemicals, etc.
Sea otters eat more than clams: sea urchins, abalone, mussels, crabs, snails, scallops, fish, barnacles, octopus, worms, and squid. The sea otters remain. The clams are returning. The ignored variant seems to be the wastewater treatment processes.
Chumash shell middens exhibit a glaring fact. Sea otters and clams were part of a balanced marine ecosystem in San Luis Bay for many thousands of years. It went out of balance when sea otters became a furry fashion fad hunted to near extinction. Apparently a new balance is underway.
Karl Kempton
Oceano
This article appears in Oct 20-30, 2022.
So glad to see the most logical explanation for the demise and the now return of our local clam (and other species) populations. For decades the sea otters have been blamed which of course is absurd given the thousands of years that they lived in balance with each other.
Man has been the #1 preditor to sea lions, sea otters , whales , and other marine mammals for thousands of years . One only needs to look at the state of Alaska to see what happens when the sea otter population goes unchecked.
Thanks for the informative message Karl. It’s nice to know we have such informed residents in the County that are willing to share their knowledge on this platform. Your dune photos are pretty spectacular as well! I’m looking forward to seeing what comes of the legal battle between CA Costal Commission, State Parks & the “Friends of the Oceano Dunes” (which seems to be a misnomer) in the near future. I don’t know about you but I’d like to see the Dunes return to its natural environment where the biggest human impact is limited to camping, walking, fishing and surfing.