| Oregon's Ocean |
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Oregonians treasure our beautiful coast and the awesome Pacific Ocean, which helps define who we are as a people. The ocean creates a sense of place, provides us with food, supports the economy and livability of coastal communities, and provides an economic portal to the rest of the world. Our estuaries and nearshore reefs are nurseries for abundant marine life.
Oregonians can enjoy our public beaches, dramatic scenic headlands, and a productive marine environment, thanks to the visionary leadership of Oregonians like Governors Oswald West and Bob Straub, as well as countless committed citizens who made decisions with the future in mind. It is our obligation to carry out that legacy for the generations that follow us.
Oregon has made a fundamental commitment to the stewardship of its marine resources. Within three miles of shore (the Territorial Sea), Oregon is responsible for protecting and conserving these ocean resources. Beyond these state waters, Oregon continues to assert a strong interest in preserving the health and uses of the ocean. We were the first in the nation to create a state-level ocean management program to ensure that marine resources are conserved and the marine environment protected. But as two recent national studies of the marine environment have shown, Oregon’s waters are part of a global ocean that has profound problems, and that means we must step up our efforts to protect our marine legacy from overuse, pollution, habitat loss, and effects of climate change.
Four key issues face Oregon’s Ocean:
- Our economy and way of life depend on careful stewardship and thoughtful action.
- That stewardship will depend on working with our West Coast neighbors to develop a regional conservation strategy.
- We require greater information to understand how the ocean environment is changing.
- As new uses of marine resources including alternative energy generation emerge, we must channel economic development in ways that preserve our ocean systems.
These four issues frame my strategy of ecosystem stewardship, collaboration, research, and technological innovation.
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| My Strategies |
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Ecosystem Stewardship
The Oregon Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) in 2002 recommended that the state designate a limited network of marine reserves for ecological purposes. I believe it is time for the state to implement that recommendation. Oregon should establish a network of reserves to protect important marine ecological areas and ensure that some sensitive ocean habitats are shielded from extractive uses. Marine reserves can also create baseline research areas where scientific studies and monitoring can provide information about natural variability in the marine environment. Such a network must be created with input from marine scientists, anglers, local communities, and the public to minimize the displacement of nearshore fisheries and adverse effects on coastal communities. In January 2008, OPAC will invite the public to nominate areas of the ocean to be considered for protection as marine reserves. http://www.lcd.state.or.us/LCD/OPAC/index.shtml; http://www.piscoweb.org/outreach/pubs/reserves
Regional Collaboration
In September 2006, the Governors of Washington and California joined me in launching the West Coast Agreement for Ocean Health. The Agreement demonstrates our commitment to coordinating our marine conservation efforts coastwide. It also ensures that states have a strong voice with federal agencies in the protection and management of ocean resources. Our Pacific Coast collaborative efforts are consistent with the regional councils called for by the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy.
http://governor.oregon.gov/Gov/p2006/press_091806b.shtml http://www.oceancommission.gov/documents/full_color_rpt/05_chapter5.pdf
I will continue to work with the Governor of Washington to develop scientifically based, collaborative strategies for managing the offshore sand supply near the mouth of the Columbia River to protect the jetties and beaches from erosion and destruction by storms. http://www.orsolutions.org/northwest/lcsg.htm
Marine Research and Monitoring
Oregon is an active participant in the Northwest Area Network of Ocean Observation Systems (NANOOS), which will provide real-time information on waves, storm events, and multiple measures of ocean conditions.
http://www.nanoos.org/
The Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Human Services Public Health Division will continue to monitor our ocean beaches and inform our citizens when conditions may pose risks to human health.
http://oregon.gov/DHS/ph/beaches/index.shtml
Oregon State University scientists are teaming with commercial fishermen to collect genetic data that can provide valuable clues about where Chinook salmon travel in the ocean. Funded by the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board and managed by the Oregon Salmon Commission, the Cooperative Research for Oregon’s Ocean Salmon (CROOS) project is identifying the home river basin of Chinook salmon found in the Pacific Ocean with the hope that this information will help prevent future salmon fishing closures.
http://www.projectcroos.com/
Technological Innovation
Oregon has the potential to be a leader in developing technologies to convert ocean wave energy into electricity and strengthen the economies of coastal communities. I support research and development in both the public and private sectors to create a center of excellence for ocean wave energy technology through Oregon State University and demonstration sites on the Oregon coast.
http://wave.oregonstate.edu/ http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2005/01/31/daily16.html
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