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

Snowy Plover exclusion area. Photo courtesy of U.S. Forest Service.
September 7, 2017

Snowy Plover Restrictions Still in Effect

snowy_plover_exclosure_courtesy_usfs.jpg Beachgoers are urged to help recovery efforts of the threatened Western Snowy Plover by respecting nesting areas and beach restrictions. These regulations went into effect for the year on March 15, and while most of the nesting season is over, the regulations remain in force through Sept. 15. It is...Read more
Phillip Johnson's view when the idea for CoastWatch came to him.\Photo by Dennis White.
September 3, 2017

Sitka Center History Includes CoastWatch

cascade_head_trail_dennis_white.jpg Since 1970, the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology, on Cascade Head near Otis, has served as a refuge for artists and conservation thinkers and an incubator for creative concepts. The Center has just published a book, As Natural as the World Will Allow , authored by Sharon Overton, to celebrate that history...Read more
The beach at Rockaway.\Photo by Sonja Peterson.
August 31, 2017

Bacteria Findings Show Need for Water Quality Monitoring

rockaway_beach_sonja_peterson.jpg The Oregon Beach Monitoring Program , based at the Oregon Health Association Public Health Division , began its annual, regular...Read more
Sea Change
August 30, 2017

Celebrate International Coastal Cleanup Day

coastal_clean_up_stats SEPTEMBER 16, 2017 is International Coastal Cleanup Day. Ocean trash is a serious pollution issue that affects the health of wildlife, people, and local economies. Trash on our shores and in the water increases the destruction and degradation of wildlife, water quality, and and ecosystems. In partnership with volunteer organizations...Read more
Siletz Bay.
August 24, 2017

National Estuaries Week Arrives in September

Siletz Bay at high tide. | Photo by Meg Reed National Estuaries Week is a nationwide event supported by Restore America’s Estuaries, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Estuarine Research Reserve Association, the Association of National Estuary Programs, and countless other associations and...Read more
Poster for the failed Oregon Beach Fund campaign.\Photo courtesy of Surfrider.
July 22, 2017

Beach-Related Bills Fail in Beach Bill Anniversary Year

beach_fund_image_courtesy_surfrider.jpg The 50th anniversary of Oregon’s Beach Bill seemed like an appropriate occasion for the Oregon Legislature to honor and extend this legacy. The legislators failed. Oregon Shores, Surfrider and other coastal conservation groups strongly supported Senate Bill 745, which would have created an Ocean...Read more
Sea pickles off the coast of Oregon.
July 21, 2017

Sightings: ‘Sea Pickles’ Wash Ashore in the Pacific Northwest

pyrosomes Mysterious translucent creatures are washing ashore along the western shores of North America. Known as “sea pickles” -- the scientific name is pyrosomes -- these creatures are made up of a colony of individual zooids. A zooid is a tiny multicellular organism that makes up part of a colonial animal, and can develop from another zooid by budding or...Read more
Photo of Rocky shores at Boiler Bay, by Kirt Edblom.
June 15, 2017

Progress Slow on Rocky Shores Initiative

rocky_shores_at_boiler_bay_kirt_edblom.jpg More than a year ago, Oregon Shores successfully proposed to the state’s Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) that Oregon revisit its management policies regarding our rocky shore areas. A new OPAC working group was created, chaired by Robin Hartmann, Oregon Shores’ Ocean Policy Advocate, to...Read more
Pier at Garibaldi--acidification can affect Oregon's fisheries\Photo by Sonja Peterson.
June 10, 2017

Oregon Works to Combat Ocean Acidification

Pier at Garibaldi--acidification can affect Oregon's fisheries\Photo by Sonja Peterson. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown chose World Oceans Day (June 8) to announce a commitment to fighting climate change and its impacts to ocean species and habitats. Oregon is a founding members of the Pacific Coast...Read more
Time to step up for our beaches\Photo courtesy of Surfrider.
June 6, 2017

Speak Out Now for Beach Fund Bill

Time to step up for our beaches\Photo courtesy of Surfrider. Oregon Shores has strongly supported Senate Bill 745, which creates an Ocean Beach Fund, as a means of honoring the 50th anniversary of the Oregon Beach Bill. Now, your voice is urgently needed if the bill is to escape the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue in time for passage this session...Read more