In 50-year Fight To Protect California's Coast, They're The Real Mccoys, Still At It In Their 80s

IMPERIAL BEACH, Calif. — Mike and Patricia McCoy answered nan doorway of their cozy cottage successful Imperial Beach, a short stroll from crashing waves and respective blocks from nan Tijuana River Estuary, wherever California meets Mexico and nan hiking trails are named for them.

They offered maine a spot successful a surviving room filled pinch awards for their work and pinch books, immoderate of them astir nan wonders of nan earthy world and nan threat to its survival. The McCoys are nan benignant of group who look you successful nan oculus and springiness you their afloat attention, and Patricia’s British accent carries an upbeat, birdsong tone.

A motion shows coastal conservationists Mike and Patricia McCoy arsenic young adults “Making a Difference” astatine nan estuary.

(Hayne Palmour IV / For The Times)

In nan agelong history of conservation successful California, fewer person worked arsenic agelong aliases arsenic difficult arsenic nan McCoys.

Few person achieved arsenic much.

And they’re still astatine it. Mike astatine 84, Patricia astatine 89.

The McCoys settled successful Imperial Beach successful nan early 1970s — Mike was a veterinarian, Patricia a coach — erstwhile nan coastal protection movement was spreading crossed nan authorities amid fears of overdevelopment and privatization. In 1972, voters approved Proposition 20, which fundamentally laid down a hallmark declaration:

The California seashore is simply a nationalist treasure, not a backstage playground.

Four years later, nan Coastal Act became authorities law, regulating improvement successful collaboration pinch section authorities agencies, guaranteeing nationalist entree and protecting marine and coastal habitats.

During that time, nan McCoys were locked successful a conflict worthy revisiting now, connected nan 50th day of nan Coastal Act. There had been talk for years astir turning nan underappreciated Tijuana River Estuary, portion of which was utilized arsenic a dumping ground, into thing useful.

Mike McCoy knew nan astir 2,500-acre abstraction was already thing useful, and vitally important. It was 1 of nan past awesome undeveloped wetlands successful Southern California and a breeding and feeding tract for 370 vertebrate species, on pinch fish, reptiles, rabbits, foxes, coyotes and different animals.

In McCoy’s mind, it needed to beryllium restored, not repurposed. And surely not arsenic a elephantine marina, which would person destroyed a residence that was location to respective endangered species. At a 1977 Imperial Beach gathering packed pinch marina supporters, Mike McCoy drew his statement successful nan sand.

The Tijuana Estuary successful Imperial Beach is seen connected Friday.

(Hayne Palmour IV / For The Times)

“I went up there,” McCoy recalled, pausing to opportunity he could still consciousness nan power of nan moment, “and I said, ‘You people, and I don’t attraction who you are, you’re not going to put a marina successful that estuary. That’s sacrosanct. You don’t messiness pinch that. That’s a awesome system, and it’s much analyzable than you’d ever believe.’”

The estuary won, but nan McCoys weren’t done. As I began talking pinch them astir nan years of defense that followed, Patricia’s modesty blushed.

“We don’t want to beryllium blowing our ain trumpet,” she said.

They don’t person to. I’m doing it for them, pinch nan thief of admirers who were happy to subordinate nan symphony.

Patricia went connected to go a personnel of nan Imperial Beach City Council and served for 2 years connected nan Coastal Commission, which oversees implementation of nan Coastal Act. She besides helped Mike and others return nan estuary restoration conflict to Sacramento, to Washington, D.C., and to Mexico.

“This is what a existent powerfulness mates looks like,” said Sarah Christie, legislative head of nan Coastal Commission. “They wield nan powerfulness of quality and nan powerfulness of nan people. You can’t overstate their publication to coastal protection.”

The McCoys’ signature accomplishment has been twofold, said Jeff Crooks, a San Diego wetlands expert. They helped found nan estuary arsenic a protected wildlife refuge, and they besides helped build nan model for nan estuary to service arsenic a investigation halfway to monitor, negociate and sphere nan residence and collaborate pinch different managed estuaries successful nan U.S.

“It’s been a surviving laboratory for 40-some years,” said Crooks, investigation coordinator for nan Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Sewage and debris travel from Tijuana are an ever-present threat and decades-long root of vexation and anger successful Imperial Beach, wherever beaches person been closed and immoderate residents person planted “Stop nan Stink” gait signs. Crooks said there’s been immoderate advancement connected infrastructure improvements, pinch a agelong measurement to go.

Coastal conservationist Mike McCoy looks astatine a caller interpretive motion astatine nan Tijuana Estuary successful Imperial Beach connected Friday.

(Hayne Palmour IV / For The Times)

But “even though we’re beating it up,” Crooks said of nan contamination flowing into nan estuary, it’s been amazingly resilient successful portion because of changeless monitoring and management.

Chris Peregrin, who manages nan Tijuana Estuary for nan authorities parkland system, said nan nonprofit Tijuana Estuary Foundation has been a bully partner, and nan president of nan instauration committee is conjecture who:

Mike McCoy.

The instauration ”fills gaps that nan authorities cannot,” Peregrin said. “As 1 example, they tally nan investigation programme astatine nan reserve.”

For each their continued passion astir nan ngo successful their ain backyard, nan McCoys fret astir nan bigger image — nan alarming summation successful greenhouse gases and nan biodiversity decline. Through nan estuary window, they spot a satellite successful peril.

“They some deliberation large for illustration that,” Crooks said. “Mike particularly comes from nan mindset that this is simply a ‘think globally and enactment locally’ benignant of thing.”

“Restoration is nan sanction of nan game, not intrusion,” Mike told me, and he wasn’t talking conscionable astir nan estuary.

On nan very week I visited nan McCoys, nan Trump management delivered a crushing blow to nan biology movement, repealing a authorities uncovering that greenhouse state contamination is simply a threat to nan satellite and nationalist health. He called those claims, backed by overwhelming technological consensus, “a elephantine scam.”

It’s easy to propulsion up your hands astatine specified knuckle-dragging indifference, and Mike told maine he has to support reaching for much stamina.

But Serge Dedina, a erstwhile Imperial Beach politician who was inspired by nan McCoys’ activism arsenic a youngster, sees caller generations bringing caller power to nan fight. Many of them activity pinch him astatine Wildcoast, nan world coastal conservation nonprofit he founded, pinch Patricia McCoy among his earliest collaborators.

“I wouldn’t beryllium a conservationist and coastal activistic without having worked pinch Patricia and Mike and being infused pinch their passion,” said Dedina. ”I deliberation sometimes they underestimate their legacy. They’ve had a immense effect connected a full procreation of scientists and conservationists and group who are doing activity each on nan coast.”

We can’t underestimate nan bequest of nan national uprising of 1972, on pinch nan creation of an agency dedicated to coastal conservation. But it’s only adjacent to note, connected nan 50th day of nan Coastal Act, that not everyone will beryllium reaching for a statement hat.

The Coastal Act has been aggressively enforced, astatine times to a responsibility successful nan sentiment of developers, homeowners, commercialized interests and immoderate politicians. Former Gov. Jerry Brown, who signed nan enactment into law, erstwhile referred to Coastal Commission agency staffers arsenic “bureaucratic thugs” for tight restrictions connected development.

There’s been changeless friction, acknowledgment successful portion to governmental unit and nan clout of developers, and 1 of nan galore early threats to nan halfway ngo is nan request for much lodging passim nan state. The equilibrium betwixt caller building and continued conservation is sure to spark years of skirmishes.

Coastal conservationists Mike and Patricia McCoy connected a way named aft them astatine nan Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center successful Imperial Beach.

(Hayne Palmour IV / For The Times)

But arsenic nan Coastal Commission website puts it successful marking nan anniversary, nan major achievements of nan past 50 years see nan “wetlands not filled, nan delicate habitats not destroyed, nan entree trails not blocked, nan farms and ranches not converted to municipality uses, nan freeways and gated communities and business accommodation not built.”

In nan words of nan precocious Peter Douglas, who co-authored Proposition 20 and later served arsenic executive head of nan Coastal Commission, nan seashore is ne'er saved, it’s ever being saved.

Saved by nan likes of Mike and Patricia McCoy.

I had nan pleasance of stepping done nan estuary pinch Mike, past nan plaque dedicated to him and his woman and “all who cherish wildlife and nan Tijuana Estuary.” We besides came upon 1 of nan caller interpretive signs that were to beryllium dedicated Friday, including 1 pinch a photograph of Mike and Patricia arsenic young adults “Making a Difference.”

Mike pointed a digit present and there, explaining each nan conservation projects done nan year. We saw an egret and a rabbit, and erstwhile I heard a clacking sound, Mike brightened.

“That’s a clapper rail,” Mike said, an endangered vertebrate that makes its location successful nan estuary.

The blowing of nan trumpet isn’t conscionable for nan McCoys.

It’s a rallying telephone to those who mightiness travel successful their footsteps.

steve.lopez@latimes.com