Feb. 25--Californians who care about the outdoors should also care what happens to the California Department of Fish and Game in coming years.

This state agency has an annual budget of $475 million. It owns or manages more than 1million acres of land. It is charged with conserving fisheries and other wildlife. It responds to oil spills and reviews permits for various projects, from logging to the pumping of water through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

More than any other agency, the Department of Fish and Game is the designated steward of California's natural bounty -- its coastlines, its mountains, its 7,000 species of plants and 100,000 varieties of animal life. Yet it is fair to say that, despite hard work from many of its employees, the DFG hasn't been the effective and respected steward that California needs or deserves.

In the Delta, the department has been a bit player in preventing the decline of Delta smelt and other fish. Within the top policy circles of the governor's office, the DFG is consistently trumped by the Department of Water Resources, which is aligned with big water agencies that pump water from the Delta.

In Northern California, the department has too often capitulated to the timber and mining interests that have strong friends in the Legislature. A recent example is the department's decision not to further restrict gold miners who use giant dredges in salmon streams.

Today, the Senate Rules Committee will consider whether to approve the appointment of Donald Koch, the interim DFG director who made that dredging decision.

Some environmental groups are urging the committee to reject Koch.

Others are more supportive of his appointment, noting his depth of experience as a DFG biologist and administrator.

Frankly, we don't think Koch's confirmation should be based on a handful of recent decisions that displeased certain environmental groups. But we do think lawmakers should examine those decisions in assessing several key questions:

Did Koch make the dredging decision himself, or was he pressured to do so by higher-ups? If he claims it was his decision, and his alone, can he defend it? If he can, that's a point in his favor.

What is Koch's overall vision for modernizing DFG and making it more functional? Will he elevate DFG's standing in debates over the Delta and other high-profile issues? Does he have the support and ear of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger?

One encouraging sign is that, in reaching a budget deal, the governor dropped a disputed plan to borrow $30 million from a Fish and Game wildlife fund. If Koch had something to do with that move, that's another point in his favor.

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