(Oct. 3, 2015, 4:50 a.m.) -- An application by Sea World (San Diego) for a coastal permit to enlarge its orca whale facility -- which Coastal Commission staff supports with company accepted conditions -- has prompted an outpouring of polarized written testimony -- over 150,000 emails, form letters and other written submissions pro and con (mostly con) to date -- with a large crowd expected at the Oct. 8 (9:00 a.m. start time) Coastal Commission meeting in Long Beach.

Instead of assembling in the City Council Chamber, the Commission will meet and take public testimony in the Long Beach Convention Center's Seaside Ballroom.

A publicly agendized Coastal Commission staff report recommends that the Commission approve the permit with conditions that include a pledge by Sea World (below) not to house any orcas taken from the wild after February 12, 2014 or use genetic material from orcas taken from the wild after February 12, 2014" so the contained orca population won't significantly increase "except as may occur incrementally through sustainable population growth, with the exception of rescued orcas."

Most of opposition materials urge denial of the permit outright, including the PETA Foundation (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and the Animal Welfare Institute which oppose keeping orcas in captivity. In its written materials, the Animal Welfare Institute states:

AWI strongly believes that Blue World [the Sea World exhibit] will not in any substantive way protect or enhance the lives of the orcas at SeaWorld. Indeed, if the Blue World Project is permitted, then the odds increase substantially that the orcas at SeaWorld will continue to be bred and displayed into the distant future, due to the massive commitment of resources, including $100million that SeaWorld, already deeply in debt, will need to borrow. As outlined in the appendix to this letter, the science continues to build that orcas are unsuited to confinement in concrete tanks and do not thrive in captivity. We urge the Commission to deny this permit, as increasing the likelihood that orca captivity will endure into the far future is inconsistent with this science.

However some opposition materials are more nuanced; one collectively submitted opposition letter [no signatures but groups' names under a multi-logo letterhead] urges that if the Commission approves the permit, it should condition its approval to prohibit "the captive breeding artificial insemination of orcas in captivity, prohibit the sale or offer for sale, trade or transfer for any reason other than transport to a sea pen any orca intended for performance or entertainment purposes."

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A letter dated Sept. 21 from a law firm representing Sea World includes a Project Description Addendum which states:

The Project will be managed consistent with the Virgin Pledge against collection of killer whales from the wild. Based on the Virgin Pledge, to which Sea World is a signatory, the project will not be home to any killer whales taken from the wild after February 14, 2014 and no genetic material from any killer whale taken from the wild after February 14, 2014 will be utilized, with the exception of rescued killer whales approved by one or more government agencies for rehabilitation or deemed by one or more government agencies as unfit for release into the wild. The Project killer whale population will not significantly increase except as may occur incrementally through sustainable population growth consistent with the reproductive guidelines of one or more nationally recognized marine mammal accreditation organizations. The Project may be home to beached or rescued killer whales at the request of one or more governmental agencies.

The Coastal Commission's staff report states that Sea World's proposed project will:

...Replace and expand existing orca facility with a new 43 ft. by 75 ft., 450,000 gallon (Pool E) and a 250 ft. by 350 ft. 5.2 million gallon (Pool F); demolish an existing 5,500 sq. ft. bathroom and food facility and construct a new 2,900 sq. ft. bathroom facility; manage the orca facility consistent with applicant’s proposal that the facility will not house any orcas taken from the wild after February 12, 2014, nor will it utilize genetic material taken from orcas taken from the wild after February 12, 2014, and that the orca population will not significantly increase except as may occur incrementally through sustainable population growth, with the exception of rescued orcas."

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To view the full Coastal Commission staff report (including Sea World submitted materials), click here.

To view support and opposition materials (so numerous that Coastal Comm'n staff put them in a separate file, click here (337 pages) organized as follows:

• Support letters: Letters from government officials; Letters from industry groups; Sampling of individual public comments Form letters with approximate number received; staff summary of points raised in public comments, As summarized by Commission staff, points in support included:

  [Coastal Commission staff text]:

  SeaWorld has a long history of caring for orcas and other marine mammals.

  SeaWorld employees multiple experts to care for the orcas.

  The orcas in SeaWorld are protected from the natural and man-made threats that orcas in the wild experience.

  SeaWorld is a long-standing contributor to San Diego and is a large employer.

  SeaWorld is an educational facility that provides many people their first or only opportunity to interact with multiple marine animals in a single place.

  SeaWorld has provided multiple field trips to students to allow them to learn about the marine environment at the park.

  SeaWorld has long been a safe, enjoyable family destination.

  SeaWorld is a good employer who takes the training and safety of its employees seriously, as well as the care of the animals in its parks.

  SeaWorld is a large contributor to marine research – both monetarily and with data.

  Orca captivity provides an excellent and hard-to-reproduce opportunity to be able to study orcas up close in a controlled environment, helping to set baselines to compare to orcas in the wild.

  SeaWorld has long bred orcas in captivity, and those orcas form social. connections just like the orcas in the wild.

  The orcas in captivity could not survive if released into the wild.

  SeaWorld has inspired many people to pursue a career in the marine sciences.

  SeaWorld has not taken an orca from the wild for decades, and its captive population is mostly captive bred and are cared for under vetted guidelines from both the government and recognized marine mammal groups. [end Coastal Comm'n staff text]

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• Opposition letters: Legal memos and supporting information; Form letters with approximate number received; Petitions; Sampling of individual public comments; staff summary of points raised in public comments

As summarized by Commission staff, the opponents' points included:

The size of the proposed orca facility would still be inadequate in light of the natural ocean environment in which orcas live.

Expanding the tank will allow for more breeding of captive orcas resulting in less space per orca.

Captive orca breeding engenders in-breeding and causes harm to the health of the orcas.

Captive orcas display unnatural behavior, indicating psychological or physical harm from captivity.

Captive orcas live shorter lives than wild orcas.

Orcas in the wild travel hundreds of miles a day which they cannot do in captivity.

Orcas have a complex family relationship which is damaged when individuals are separated.

Sonar echolocation is impossible to use in the tanks the orcas are kept in.

Sea pens or wild release would be beneficial to the captive orcas.

Orca captivity gives San Diego, and the United States in general, a bad name worldwide.

SeaWorld’s declining attendance indicates the changing public attitudes against orca captivity.

Tourism will suffer if the project is approved

The Coastal Commission should wait until the proposed legislation in the California State Assembly regarding orca captivity reaches a final decision.

SeaWorld is no longer an educational facility but has instead become another amusement park.

It is immoral to keep animals for human entertainment and profit.

The expansion should only occur if captive breeding is prohibited.

SeaWorld pollutes Mission Bay.

SeaWorld causes noise and water pollution from fireworks.

Expanded tanks should not be allowed in a drought. [end Coastal Comm'n staff text]

The support/opposition materials file also includes disclosures of ex parte (one side present) contacts (lawful when disclosed.) Coastal Commissioner (and LB Councilman) Roberto Uranga indicates that he toured the San Diego facility and discussed the matter with Sea World representatives in early September, and later met with and heard positions in opposition from Sara Wan [former Coastal Commissioner] and Elizabeth Lambe [in an individual capacity; title for identification only: Exec. Dir. of Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust.] [Commissioners Cox and Vargas had similar ex parte communications with both sides.]

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Developing...with further to follow on LBREPORT.com.