Coastal Conservation News Archive

A complete archive of our past news articles, beginning in Fall 2016; older articles from our previous website are available in the historical archive

Photo of rocky shore near Cannon Beach by Mark Stalcup.
December 14, 2015

Oregon Will Revisit State’s Rocky Shores in 2016

Rocky shore near Cannon Beach. Photo by Mark Stalcup. Responding to a proposal put forward by Oregon Shores at its December 3 meeting, the state's Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) created a new working group tasked with revisiting Oregon's policies regarding rocky shore protection. Robin Hartmann, Oregon Shores' Ocean Policy Advocate, will chair the new "...Read more
Photo of Robin Hartmann.
December 14, 2015

OPAC Settles on New Ocean Policy Priorities

Robin Hartmann, Oregon Shores' Ocean Policy Advocate, on her CoastWatch mile. Oregon’s Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) met in Tillamook on December 3 and reached consensus on selecting three “new” ocean policy areas to focus on over the next two years: marine debris, ocean acidification, and coastal resilience. In addition, OPAC members will continue their...Read more
Photo of King Tide flooding at Netarts Bay, by Tracey Schmidt.
December 5, 2015

King Tide Project Surges Again

Netarts Bay shoreline during recent King Tide series. Photo by Tracey Schmidt. The second round of this year's King Tide project took place last week with the high tide sequence from November 24-27. The first round took place in October, and photos have been posted. But there is still plenty of opportunity to participate. Get out your cameras and visit the...Read more
Photo of students examining scientific speciments, courtesy of Ocean Inquiry.
November 22, 2015

Plan Now for ‘Sharing the Coast’ in 2016

Students learning at sea. Photo courtesy of Ocean Inquiry CoastWatch collaborates each year with the Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators (NAME) in sponsoring the annual Sharing the Coast Conference, which offers a wealth of information to those monitoring the coast (CoastWatchers) and those teaching about it and interpreting it for visitors (NAME members,...Read more
Photo of coastal property south of Lost Creek, by Sara Schreiber.
November 18, 2015

State Parks Approves Riprap Application Despite Objections

Stretch of shoreline south of Lost Creek to be riprapped. Photo by Sara Schreiber. It is no surprise to learn that the riprap application for a lot south of Newport, which had aroused the concern of some CoastWatchers, was approved by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD). Those interested in seeing the approval and the conditions imposed can find...Read more
Photo of entrance to the Jordan Cove proposed LNG export facility.
November 15, 2015

Temporary Victory on Jordan Cove Land Use Appeal

Entrance to site of proposed Jordan Cove LNG export facility. Photo by Lisa Readel. For the time being, at least, Oregon Shores has succeeded in thwarting the would-be developers of an LNG (liquefied natural gas) export facility at Jordan Cove on Coos Bay’s north spit. The Jordan Cove Energy Project (a branch of Canadian corporation Veresen) had sought to “...Read more
Photo of King Tide flooding at Netarts Bay, by Tracey Schmidt.
November 3, 2015

King Tide Project Looks Toward Next Round in November

Netarts Bay shoreline during recent King Tide series. Photo by Tracey Schmidt. The first round of this year's King Tide project has now been completed, but there is still plenty of opportunity to participate. Get out your cameras and visit the coast during the final two sets of extreme high tide events this year, November 24-27 and December 23-25. For the sixth...Read more
Photo of Mike Martin standing atop Coalbank Slough debris slide.
October 20, 2015

Battle to Assure Cleanup of Coalbank Slough Continues

The long-running saga of Coalbank Slough isn’t over yet. A year ago, we announced that we had successfully settled our Clean Water act lawsuit over a 2012 debris slide that had severely polluted the slough, a tributary of Coos Bay. It had been a long struggle to that point, over a year and a half, but we thought we had obtained an agreement from Johnson Rock Products (JRP), the perpetrators of...Read more
Photo of purple water.
October 19, 2015

Cause Identified for Purple Tides Noted by CoastWatchers

Mysterious purple patches are being observed along the coast. The answer to the summer's trick CoastWatch question, "What is causing the purple water?" turned out to be "salps." Numerous reports came in over a period of weeks concerning “purple water” or “a gelatinous purple mass” in the water. It took a while to determine the cause, and several suspects were suggested. Finally, though, Caren...Read more
Photo of women recording beached bird data on the beach.
October 19, 2015

Beached Bird Training Available to South Coast

Conducting the beached bird survey. Photo courtesy of COASST. Those of you at the southern end of the Oregon shore who would like to learn about the beached bird survey can gain an opportunity by traveling a bit further south. A training will take place across the border on Sunday, Oct. 25, noon-5 p.m., at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds Board Room, 421 Hwy...Read more