The State of Oregon’s Territorial Sea Plan Working Group is about to go on a traveling roadshow to update, inform, and listen to feedback from citizens and stakeholders on the process to amend our Territorial Sea Plan (TSP) and identify potentially suitable places where renewable energy might be allowed to occur within our state waters (0-3 nautical miles). This is a great opportunity to come out and learn more, show your support for the comprehensive planning process, and ask questions or raise concerns that you might have. Here is a good primer on how we have been engaging on this issue over the past several years as well as our study on Non-Consumptive recreational uses in Oregon that we partnered with State Agencies on for this process.

Here is a list of the meeting locations and dates, click on each one for meeting info and agendas:

Feb 2nd, 11am Portland

Feb 2nd, 5:30pm Eugene

Feb 10th, 11am Bandon

Feb 10th, 5:30pm Brookings

Feb 17th, 11am Camp Rilea

Feb17th, 5:30pm Cannon Beach

Feb 24th, 11am Waldport

Feb 24th, 5:30pm Reedsport

March 6th, 11am Depoe Bay

March 6th, 5:30pm Pacific City

Can’t make one of the meetings, but want provide input? Submit written comments online here

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

The International Port of Coos Bay Commission will hold a special meeting to review the staff report culminating nearly 2 years of stakeholder discussions on the topic of marine reserves within the Coos Bay area, as well as listen to public comment. This meeting will be held on Wednesday, January 11th at 6pm in the North Bend Community Center at 2222 Broadway Ave., North Bend. Click here for more information on the meeting, as well as the staff report, dissenting & majority reports, and background on the committee. This is a good opportunity to come out and show your support for marine conservation in this ecologically rich area, please contact Oregon Policy Manager Gus Gates at ggates@surfrider.org if you are interested in attending.

Two very important meetings that will help shape the direction of future ocean planning will be taking place on Thursday & Friday (December 15/16th) in Astoria. The Territorial Sea Plan Working Group will be meeting on Thursday from Noon-5pm, with a subsequent screening of 2 ocean films starting at 6pm at the Fort George Brewery. The Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC) will be meeting on Friday from 9am-4pm. Both meetings will be held at the Holiday Inn Express on 204 West Marine Drive in Astoria. More information and background meeting materials can be found here. You can learn more about our engagement in the Territorial Sea Planning process here.

We’re thrilled to offer our best Holiday gift membership package ever! We’ve bundled together the quintessential package for your friends, family and loved ones this holiday season. From the smallest ripper to oldest grom, this gift will definitely stoke anyone who receives it! For only $49, you can send your favorite beach enthusiast:

•    A Limited-edition, Surfrider Foundation 2-in-1 Changing Mat is the perfect solution for changing in and out of wet gear and for storing wetsuits, workout clothing, or other wet accessories! This 2-in-1 design features a durable polyester mat that helps keep the sand off your wetsuit while changing, then once you’re out, simply cinch up the drawstring cord to convert the changing mat into a wet bag! Great for any water sports enthusiast and even works for storing yoga or wet gym clothes as well!
•    A Bamboo Wax Comb to ensure every surfer has the right amount of control with every turn made.
•    A bar of Matunas 100% Natural Wax to provide the best grip.
•    A One-Year Membership to the Surfrider Foundation that includes 2 membership stickers, 6 issues of our digital newsletter Making Waves and a 20% discount at swell.com.

Give the gift that protects the beach you love and the waves we surf.

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.

The Oregon Department of and Fish and Wildlife will host two public meetings describing fishing and other prohibitions scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2012 at the Otter Rock marine reserve and the Redfish Rocks marine reserve and marine protected area. Both of these sites were designated marine reserves in 2009 but the prohibitions were delayed  so scientists could collect baseline data from each site.

Redfish Rocks meeting: Nov.  16 from 6-7:30pm at the Port Orford Community Hall, 419E 11^th St, Port Orford

Otter Rock meeting: Nov.  17 from 6-7:30pm at the Depoe Bay Community Hall, 220 SE Bay Street, Depoe Bay

Staff members from ODFW and the Oregon State Police will be available to answer questions and provide information on the prohibitions and boundaries of each of the two marine reserve sites.

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!

Now in it’s 7th year, the Heceta Head Coastal Conference is an event worth attending. Mark your calendars and register today to attend the conference happening on October 28/29th in Florence. This year’s program features the fresh faces leading ocean research in Oregon. Participants will learn about the cutting edge of marine science in our waters, focusing on new discoveries and future directions, including a student research poster session highlighting the next generation of Oregon’s scientists from colleges and universities throughout our state. There are Discovery Trips happening on Friday afternoon around the Siuslaw Estuary, as well as a dinner reception and presentation on Friday night.