Ocean News Archive

All ocean news articles

December 3, 2020

Campaign to Preserve Rocky Shore Habitats in Home Stretch

The view from Blacklock Point.\Photo by Alex Derr. The state of Oregon is developing a new Rocky Habitat Management Strategy, the first revision of Oregon’s policy for protecting rocky intertidal and nearshore subtidal ecosystems since 1994. Oregon Shores has been actively engaged in this process for the past three years. We are now in the crucial final phase—...Read more
September 6, 2020

Oregon Shores Joins Defense of Endangered Species Act

Western Snowy Plovers at South Beach.\Photo by Molly Sultany. Oregon Shores joined 45 other ocean conservation groups recently in protesting an attempt by the Trump administration to cripple the Endangered Species Act, with new definitions of “habitat” which would severely limited the law’s effectiveness. To see our joint comment,...Read more
July 12, 2020

BioBlitzes in a New Format Coming up in July

Fawn Custer (kneeling), CoastWatch's citizen science trainer, leads a BioBlitz at Cascade Head. A BioBlitz is an intensive survey of a defined area with the goal of identifying all the species to be found in that area at one time, generally involving members of the public assisted by experts. It is a snapshot of biodiversity. In past years, coastal...Read more
April 27, 2020

Public Comment on Rocky Habitat Plan Due

Tidepool at Cape Perpetua.\Photo by Briton Ogden. The public has one more chance to offer comments on Oregon’s newly emerging Rocky Habitat Management Strategy. After several years of work—in which Oregon Shores has participated actively—an all-but-final draft is being considered. The Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) is expected to consider adopting the...Read more
March 15, 2020

Black Oystercatcher Survey Still Taking Place

Birds, Citizen Science, Marine Conservation, Marine Reserves, Rocky Intertidal Zone. The annual citizen science project to survey Black Oystercatcher nests is coming up again, May through August, and volunteers are needed. The survey is a partnership among the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, Portland Audubon, and local conservation...Read more
September 6, 2019

Beach Water Quality Monitoring Continues to Reveal Pollution

Frolicking in ocean waters--check to make sure they aren't polluted.\Photo by Sonja Peterson. The Oregon Beach Monitoring Program , based at the Oregon Health...Read more
May 29, 2019

Orca Awareness Month Declared in Oregon

For 13 years, June has been proclaimed Orca Awareness Month by the Governor of Washington — and for the first time in 2016, Orca Awareness Month was celebrated in Oregon and in British Columbia as well! The American Cetacean Society’s Oregon Chapter kicked things off early with an Orca Awareness Day at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. Any community group, science center, non-profit...Read more
Marine debris survey training in progress.|Photo by Dennis White.
March 15, 2019

CoastWatch Has Key Roles in Marine Debris Efforts

Marine debris survey training in progress. | Photo by Dennis White. CoastWatchers have been actively cleaning beaches of marine debris since the program was founded more than 25 years ago, and CoastWatch has had an organized marine debris project for the past eight years. In the wake of the 2011 Japanese tsunami, Oregon Shores (through CoastWatch) joined with...Read more
Port Orford Quest. Photo by Cait Goodwin.
September 4, 2018

Questing for Natural Treasures

People participating in a Quest in Port Orford. | Photo by Cait Goodwin. Quests are fun, free-choice learning adventures that use clues and hints to encourage participants to discover the natural, cultural and historical "treasures" of place and community. Suitable for groups of all ages, self-guided Quests allow lifelong learners to explore parks, trails and...Read more
January 30, 2018

February 6 Rally to Protest Oil Drilling Scheme

Oregon Shores is joining with many other conservation groups to sponsor a rally on the State Capitol steps to protest the Trump administration’s suddenly announced plan to open Oregon’s ocean waters to oil drilling leases (along with almost all United States marine areas). The rally takes places at 2:30 p.m., in conjunction with a hearing by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)...Read more