Land News Archive

All articles related to land use

Annie Merrill in the field.

Oregon Shores Adds Land Use Coordinator

Annie Merrill in the field, studying oysters and eelgrass. Oregon Shores will greatly enhance our capacity to tackle important land use and shoreline management issues in 2023. Long-time Executive Director Phillip Johnson is taking on a new role, that of Conservation Director (while a new Executive Director, Elise Newman, will handle the administrative side of...Read more
Yaquina Bay and Newport.

Oregon Shores Hiring for New Land Use Position

Yaquina Bay and Newport.\Photo by Rena Olson, with support from Lighthawk. Oregon Shores is building capacity and adding staff as we tackle new challenges and new opportunities. We recently announced that we are hiring a new Executive Director, while the current executive director moves into a newly created position, that of Conservation Director (see following...Read more
Offshore wind turbines.\Photo courtesy of Stanford University.

Offshore Wind Energy Planning in Next Phase

Offshore wind turbines.\Photo courtesy of NOAA. The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has Oregon in its sights for development of wind energy turbines in federal waters off our shores. In conjunction with the state’s Department of Land Conservation and Development, BOEM planners have been assessing Oregon’s wind energy potential. Earlier this...Read more
Highway 101 threatened by erosion at Beverly Beac.

Hearing Will Consider Shoreline Armoring for Ocean-Facing Roads

Highway 101 threatened by erosion at Beverly Beach.\Photo by Dennis White. Oregon’s Land Conservation and Development Commission (LCDC) will consider a change to the state’s land use rules to allow shoreline armoring to protect roads adjacent to the ocean shore, including Highway 101. The hearing on the proposed new rule will take place far from the coast, at...Read more
Site of Facebook disaster, where a communications cable crossed the seabed.

Hearing on Communications Sites

Site of Facebook disaster, where a communications cable crossing the seabed came onshore.\Photo by Ron Bourke. The Department of State Lands (DSL) is accepting public comment on rulemaking that would establish distinct administrative rules for communication site facility leases. The proposed...Read more
Beach party on a misty day.

State Begins Study of Public Access

Oregon Shores has advocated for preserving public access to Oregon’s public shoreline for more than half a century. The issue is always lurking in the background when development is proposed, but now it is moving to the foreground for active consideration. The Oregon Coastal Management Program (a part of the Department of Land Conservation and Development) has begun a study of public access to...Read more
Entrance to Lighthouse Beach footpath.

Lawsuit Seeks to Preserve Lighthouse Beach Access

Entrance to Lighthouse Beach footpath.\Photo courtesy of Surfrider. Oregon Shores has worked to preserve access to our public beaches throughout our 50-year history. Access was frequently threatened decades ago, and recent events demonstrate that it isn’t guaranteed now without a battle. Our Beach Bill assures public access along the shoreline, but access to...Read more
Old growth forest at Colebrook Quarry site

Questions Raised about Curry County Quarry Plan

Old growth forest at Colebrook Quarry site.\Photo by Rich Nawa. Oregon Shores has joined other conservation groups in raising serious questions about a proposed new rock quarry in the Hunter Creek watershed in Curry County. We have...Read more

CoastWatch Joins Hunt for Hybrid Beachgrass

Rebecca Mostow in the field. Much of the terrain of the Oregon's sandy shoreline we see today has been shaped by two dominant, invasive beachgrass species. They build the tall, stable dunes that parallel sandy beaches, providing some protection for infrastructure but causing the decline of native animal and plant species. A team from Oregon State University...Read more

Landowners Rush Ahead with Riprap in Advance of Appeal

Destruction of the shoreline at Pine Beach due to shoreline armoring project.\Photo by Randy Stevenson. Oregon Shores is battling what we consider to be a grossly inappropriate shoreline armoring project in Tillamook County. Joined by the Surfrider Foundation, we are appealing a decision by the county commissioners to allow an “exception” to statewide planning...Read more