SAN DIEGO – A colony of federally protected harbor seals is causing a stink about whether it should spend its days lounging at a popular San Diego cove or be sent packing.
On Monday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that adds a marine mammal park to the list of acceptable uses for the sheltered cove where the seals have lived for years.
The potential reprieve came just hours after a San Diego judge ordered the city to begin chasing the pesky pinnipeds from the beach by Thursday — or risk hefty fines — to comply with a 2005 order to restore the cove to its original condition.
Gina Coburn, a spokeswoman for the city attorney's office, said city officials will hold a news conference Tuesday to announce their plans now that state law includes a provision for the seals at the site.
Environmentalists rejoiced at the news and had high hopes for the seals at Children's Pool, one of two beaches in Southern California where harbor seals give birth and nurse their young.
The bill means that the city, which had planned to spend $688,000 chasing away the seals, has legal grounds to ask the judge to change his order, said Bryan Pease, an attorney for several pro-seal groups.
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