Saving Seafood

REP. DEFAZIO RE-INTRODUCES SOUTHWESTERN OREGON SALMON AND WATERSHED PROTECTION ACT TO MAKE SW OREGON MINING BAN PERMANENT

March 1, 2021 — The following was released by The Office of Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR):

Rep. Peter DeFazio yesterday re-introduced legislation to make permanent a twenty-year ban on new mining projects in the Pistol River and Rough and Ready Creek watersheds in southwest Oregon.

“These watersheds provide critical drinking water for several communities and support highly sensitive ecosystems for salmon as well as the highest concentrations of rare plants in Oregon,” said Rep. DeFazio. “This legislation is necessary to maintain the current 20-year ban on mining in the area and will enable Congress to make that ban permanent.  For the health of our communities and ecosystems throughout the region, it is imperative to protect this area from the threat of foreign-owned mining companies.”

“The headwaters of our wild rivers are no place for strip mining,” said Ann Vileisis, President of the Kalmiopsis Audubon Society, Port Orford. “We’re grateful that Rep. DeFazio continues to fight to protect Southwest Oregon’s cherished rivers.”

“As a brewer, I care deeply about protecting the source of the water I use to make great beer,” said James Smith, Arch Rock Brewery, Gold Beach. “I applaud Congressman DeFazio for introducing legislation to permanently protect the headwaters of Hunter Creek and other amazing wild rivers in southwestern Oregon from the threat of strip mining.”

“I so appreciate that Rep. DeFazio has reintroduced the Southwestern Oregon Watershed and Salmon Protection Act,” said Dave Lacey, South Coast Tours, Gold Beach. “It means so much to local residents of Curry County to protect our rivers. My business, South Coast Tours, is completely reliant on thriving and resilient ecosystems that would be imperiled by strip mining the headwaters of our Wild Rivers Coast streams.”

In 2017, the Obama administration agreed to DeFazio’s request to establish a 20-year ban on new mining projects in the Pistol River and Rough and Ready Creek watersheds.

Pacific Sardine Landings May Shift North as Ocean Warms, New Projections Show

February 25, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Pacific sardines are a small but sometimes numerous fish closely intertwined with California’s fishing history. A new study linking climate change and the northern sardine stock fishery shows that they may shift north along the West Coast as the ocean warms.

A climate-driven northward shift by sardines could cause a decline in landings of the northern sardine stock by 20 to 50 percent in the next 60 years. These changes would affect historic California fishing ports such as San Pedro and Moss Landing, according to the new research published in Fisheries Oceanography. The study did not examine whether southern sardine stock would also shift northward, potentially offsetting this decline in landings. In turn, landings at northern port cities such as Astoria, Oregon, and Westport, Washington, are projected to benefit.

Researchers examined three possible “climate futures.” The warmest had the most pessimistic outcomes, with total sardine landings in all West Coast states declining 20 percent by 2080.

Understanding climate-driven shifts in habitat helps predict impacts on landings

The study translates environmental shifts into possible impacts on fishing communities and coastal economies. Sardines have historically gone through “boom and bust” changes in their population. Their numbers off the West Coast have remained low in recent years, with the West Coast sardine fishery closed since 2015. This research does not project changes in the abundance of sardines. Instead, it shows that climate-driven shifts in their habitat may have a significant impact on landings at historically important ports.

“As the marine environment changes, so too will the distribution of marine species,” said James Smith, a research scientist with the University of Santa Cruz affiliated with NOAA Fisheries’ Southwest Fisheries Science Center. “But linking future changes in the distribution of species with impacts on the fishing fleet has been challenging. Hopefully our study can provide information about potential impacts in coming decades, and thereby inform strategies to mitigate these impacts.”

Read the full release here