Thanks to all of our volunteers for there amazing work in 2011! Here’s to another great year!

Today through November 27th comes the first of three king tide events on the Oregon coast. So what is a king tide? Simply put they are tide events occurring in early winter where the high tide is unusually higher than typical tides throughout the year. Oregon is encouraging citizens to participate in the King Tide Photo Project, in order to document and help understand the impacts of sea level rise in the coming decades. Grab your camera and get out to the coast and help Oregon coastal planners better understand what may be to come in the future. Just so happens the king tides this year tend to like the holidays, which makes for a perfect exit strategy for any undesired holiday party – “Sorry guys, my camera and the coast are being beckoned by mother ocean’s monarchist event”. Find out more about king tides, the project and how to upload your photos by going to the King Tide Photo Project webpage.

It’s officially that season where the rain starts to flow and maybe so does your nose and hind-end after a surf in the soupy runoff. Yes, it’s true that the majority of pollution entering our oceans that make us sick comes from our rain and storm water runoff. This stuff picks up nasty bacteria along the way from various sources, entering the ocean and can often give us surfers and ocean enthusiasts a nasty infection. Never fear, we’re testing and sampling recreational beaches even where the state’s beach monitoring program isn’t able to currently test through our Blue Water Task Force Program. This past month we reclaimed south coast sampling efforts through our teach and test work with the Driftwood Middle School  and Pacific High School students. We couldn’t do this without the stellar leadership and cooperation of Driftwood teacher Fred Betz and Pacific High teacher Curt Gault. Major karma points and high fives to these fellas! Check out the quick slideshow of the recent field trips and training. Wanna get involved or just learn more about our various Blue Water Task Force programs up and down the coast? Go here to learn more or connect with a volunteer coordinator! Results are posted regularly here.  Know before you go!

For the past 5 years, the Oregon Chapters have had the great benefit of having legal and policy support from a Legal Clerk position. This position originated in the Portland Chapter when they decided that they wanted to help support statewide efforts and better connect with emerging leaders with expertise in ocean law and policy. The previous law clerks have all come from Lewis and Clark Law School and played a very active role with the Portland Chapter, and several of them have gone on to become Chapter leaders and awesome activists in their own right. This year, we decided to hire a candidate from the University of Oregon School of Law for the first time with the desire for the position to help us engage our Eugene membership on a deeper level and better connect with the UO. Emily Johnson was the chosen candidate from a field of very highly qualified candidates. Emily originally comes from Iowa, having studied Business Management at Iowa State University with minors in Biology and Political Science. Her previous experience includes working with the Trustees for Alaska this past summer. In her spare time, Emily enjoys kayaking and SCUBA diving. Please join us in welcoming Emily to the Oregon Surfrider Team!

Laurie Penland was doing some diving off of the coast of Belize, near a portion of the unique and wonderful Meso-American Barrier reef. This amazing reef system includes various protected areas and parks including the Belize Barrier Reef, Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park, Hol Chan Marine Reserve, Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve, and the Cayos Cochinos Marine Park. Laurie was stationed at Smithsonian Marine Research Station on Carrie Bow and when I came across her story today “Witness to a Plastic Invasion” , felt I had to share…read it and watch the video. Her stunning underwater video posted along with her self reflection on the 2 day event is worth a read and a share. What do you see in your daily life and in the ocean?

Last year, President Obama established the National Ocean Policy to help protect and restore our nation’s oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes. The policy is already being implemented and is improving collaboration between government agencies, scientists, ocean users, and members of the public. Oregon is being viewed as an emerging leader for successful implementation of this policy with our collaborative efforts to amend our Territorial Sea Plan currently underway. Unfortunately, some Members of Congress are attempting to stop the National Ocean Policy with a backdoor attack through an FY12 Interior Appropriations bill. Halting implementation of the policy would reduce our nation’s capacity to protect and restore our ocean and coastal ecosystems and the communities that depend upon them. Please make your voice heard and ask your Senators and Representative to support the National Ocean Policy and oppose any proposal that would restrict its funding or implementation. Participate in our action alert today by clicking here.

I’m constantly asked both before and after beach cleanups if “anything was or is expected to be found from the Tsunami in Japan”? Folks are constantly interested whether for radioactive fear or salvage interests, when all that stuff from Japan is going to hit the coast over here. To be precise would be difficult, but it’s safe to say, it’s not hear yet! Millions of tons of debris that washed into the Pacific Ocean during Japan’s earthquake and tsunami last March is headed to U.S. shores now. Scientists using computer models say the wreckage, covering an area roughly the size of California, which is scattered across hundreds of miles of the Pacific Ocean and moving at a rate of about 10 miles a day, is expected to reach Midway Island and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands by next spring and beaches in California, Oregon and Washington in 2013 or early 2014. Read more and watch video of the wreckage at sea.

It’s well known in the Oregon surfing community that Spencer Reynolds does some beautiful artwork. Check out Spencer’s new website here. In celebration of International Surfing Day, Spencer is generously donating 25% of online print sales from June 20-25th to the Oregon Chapters of the Surfrider Foundation. Get a few pieces to help beautify your home today, and help support the continued protection and enjoyment of Oregon’s ocean, waves and beaches at the same time. Kudos Spencer!

It’s the 3rd annual Otter Rock n Roll Beach Cleanup Challenge and Youth Surf Contest! Registration is now open for this fantastic opportunity, the only such event exclusive to youth 18 and under and their families on the Oregon coast. Each yer the Oregon chapters of Surfrider Foundation put on this event to help inspire and get kids more involved in protecting and enjoying the oceans, waves and beaches in celebration of International Surf Day. Register now and learn more at www.otterrockandroll.com.

Oregon is as an ideal location for wave energy, and many companies have expressed interest in developing this resource for renewable commercial power. The State is now entering the second phase of a process to amend its Territorial Sea Plan for renewable energy development through a spatial planning process that will locate areas where renewable energy development may be sited within Oregon’s Territorial waters. We here at Surfrider have been working very hard to make sure that recreational areas and interests are protected in this process, you can learn more about that by clicking here. But now, we need your help! Listed below is a schedule of public meetings to help explain the process and allow the public an opportunity to provide comments or input. Don’t let ocean recreation be the red-headed step child of ocean planning, tell state agencies that recreational uses of the coast are as important in considering ocean planning as the many other uses of our ocean.

Click here for a full list and times of the meetings as well as an opportunity to submit comments online!