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By: Sylvia Ramirez - Thu, 29 Nov 2012 15:10:18 -0800
 DRAKES BAY (BCN) -- Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar will let the historic Drakes Bay Oyster Company's operating permit expire this week, he announced Thursday.
The oyster operation had a 40-year permit to operate through Nov. 30, 2012.
Today's decision will end the company's operations in the Point Reyes National Seashore, including an on-shore oyster processing facility and offshore oyster harvesting activities that occur on 1,000 acres of estuary, according to a Department of the Interior news release.
"After careful consideration of the applicable law and policy, I have directed the National Park Service to allow the permit for the Drakes Bay Oyster Company to expire at the end of its current term and to return the Drakes Estero to the state of wilderness that Congress designated for it in 1976," Salazar said in a statement.
"I believe it is the right decision for Point Reyes National Seashore and for future generations who will enjoy this treasured landscape," Salazar said.
(Copyright 2012, Bay City News, All rights reserved.)
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