SAN DIEGO, June 25 (UPI) -- Most San Diego residents feel a colony of seals living at La Jolla's Children's Pool beach should be allowed to remain at the site, poll results indicate.
A Competitive Edge Research & Communication poll found 63 percent of San Diego residents surveyed do not want the seals to be driven away from the popular tourist site despite the fact the animals are contaminating area waters, The San Diego Union-Tribune said Thursday
The poll, which surveyed 504 adults June 18-22, found that 25 percent of respondents supported moving the marine animals. The remaining percentages in the recent poll, which had a margin of error of 4.4 percent, were unsure or neutral.
Children's Pool beach was designated as a swimming spot for kids in 1931, but its waters have been contaminated with feces since nearly 200 seals took up residence there in the 1990s.
Competitive Edge President John Nienstedt said nearly 70,000 San Diego families may skip visiting the beach near downtown La Jolla if the seals are forced out.
"If I am a La Jolla shopkeeper … in this recession, that 70,000 sounds pretty big to me," Nienstedt said.
