DID YOU KNOW That Macro Trends are Conspiring to Privatize Tide and Submerged Lands Around Us?

     In a controversial decision, Judge Gerald L. Buchwald of the San Mateo Superior Court ruled that the property on the San Mateo coast, Martin’s beach, was not subject to the California statewide public trust doctrine due to the fact that it’s historical ownership harked back to when it was part of Mexico.    Vinod Khosla, the billionaire venture capitalist best known for founding Sun Microsystems and making investments in ethanol, who recently bought the property was being sued by various parties that became indignant when Khosla instead of continuing the prior owners' practice of allowing and charging visitors simply closed access. 

   Controversial as this decision may be, the reality is that we should all be glad that the holes in the public trust doctrine are being brought to light.  As the California Supreme Court  noted: “The objective of the public trust is always evolving so that a trustee is not burdened by outmoded classifications favoring the original and traditional triad of commerce, navigation and fisheries over those uses encompassing changing public needs.” (National Audubon Society v. Superior Court supra page 434) Since that time other uses such as bathing, swimming, boating and general recreational purposes have been added to the mix.

   A couple of interesting factoids: today the planet has over 7 billion inhabitants with a projected increase to over 11 billion by 2100.  In addition our planet is over seventy percent covered by water.  Climate change and sea level rise are increasing the amount of land covered by water at an accelerating rate.   From the very beginning, human populations have tended to cluster right at the borders of land and water.