The Port of Seattle estimates that 150 cruises leave for Alaska from Seattle from May to September. These cruise ships generate approximately 35 tons of biomass (poop), each day and currently discharge this partially-treated material just 12 nautical miles from Washington’s shoreline.
The Cruise Ship Wastewater Management Report states that this issue and impacts to the environment that can be avoided through the diversion of waste from cruise ships through King County’s wastewater management system.
The Seattle Surfrider chapter is currently involved and monitoring progress on this issue. Contact seattle@surfrider.org to learn more.
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This season has produced some serious winter storms including a swell in early December that produced 50ft. + waves. While this season’s storms have unearthed some buried treasure and ancient forest they’ve also added to the growing problem of coastal erosion. Erosion along the coast is a common problem but one that is only perpetuated with the use of ripraps.
Rock ripraps are a conventional approach to bank erosion yet one that does not provide a long term solution. Ripraps may solve an immediate problem but may only accelerate erosion over time. As the beach is eroded in front of a riprap, the supply of sand available to nearby beaches is substantially reduced, thereby accelerating erosion at adjacent beaches.
Maine, South Carolina and North Carolina have all outlawed the use of ripraps. South Carolina had this to say “…..without adequate controls, development unwisely has been sited too close to the system (ocean beach / dune). This type of development has jeopardized the stability of the beach/dune system, accelerated erosion, and endangered adjacent property….hard erosion control devices such as seawalls, bulkheads, and rip-rap to protect erosion-threatened structures adjacent to the beach has not proven effective.”
Coastal erosion is a natural process which becomes a significant problem only when structures are erected in close proximity to the coastline. The town of Neskowin, Oregon has been experiencing massive beach erosion for many years and the use of ripraps has only turned natural erosion into a disaster, threatening a publicly-treasured resource.
Here’s a great breakdown of the events leading up to the erosion of more the 600 yards of destroyed beaches in Neskowin, Orgeon.
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The Oregon Coast is a harsh environment, with rain, high winds and big surf the norm. A typical day at the coast in these conditions doesn’t normally involve frolicking in the shallows but the lure of a sunny day draws crowds not acquainted with the ocean’s temperament. Gleneden Beach in particular is known for it’s strong rips and heavy waves making it a dangerous place to wade, let alone swim along the Oregon Coast.
An 11yr. old boy lost his life on Saturday at Gleneden Beach, Oregon after he was quickly swept into the high surf and drown. Sadly, a 16yr old went in to attempt a rescue and has not been seen since. A sad weekend on the Oregon Coast.
Almost 1yr. ago a surfer drown in high surf off the Oregon Coast and tragically it happens every year. The Coast Guard made 2 other rescues on Saturday, saving the lives of those unknowing to the dangers of the North Pacific.
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and the 72ft. Finavera wave energy buoy is still sitting at the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Newport, OR - corroding, seeping and deteriorating away.
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The Shark Shield surf model, designed to protect surfers by deterring sharks, was put to the test last week in South Africa. It was activated on a float carrying bait when a shark approached and rather than being deterred by the device as it should have been, bit into it.
Rod Hartley, director of Sea Change Technology, which manufactures the Shark Shields, said the failure of the product was due to a problem with the electrode’s configuration. The Shark Shield is now packaged with a large disclaimer warning it would only repel sharks when the surfer was still in the water waiting for a wave - so you’re covered just as long as you don’t paddle or ride waves.
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We’re fans here of Google Earth, not simply for it’s innate ability to locate remote surf spots, but it’s power in displaying data that was once only static. The Google Earth image above allows us to visualize, for the first time, the impact humans are having on the ocean’s ecosystems. The full map shows that over 40% of the world’s oceans are heavily affected by human activities and very few areas remain untouched, including the Pacific Northwest.
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An Oregon State University team reports that the “dead zones” found off the coast of Oregon are unlike anything recorded over the past 50 years. Scientists first noticed the “dead zones” in 2002, when an area of ocean water with low oxygen content formed in the near shore Oregon coast between Newport and Florence, causing a massive die-off of fish, crab and other marine life. They suspect that the “dead zones” could be fueled by stronger winds that might reflect larger global warming trends.
Global warming is expected to heat the air over land quicker than over the water, creating the potential to drive more winds thus causing more upwelling. As nutrients rise to the top, they eventually sink and die drawing more oxygen out of the water as they decay.
It’s a rapid and disturbing shift in ocean conditions in the Pacific Northwest in what has traditionally been one of the world’s more productive marine areas.
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The Commission for Environmental Cooperation just released a new map layer for Google Earth that allows users to explore pollution data from over 30,000 industrial facilities in North America. You can learn about the pollution profile of each facility, including which pollutants are generated and how the facility handles them. There a quite a few along the Northwest coast, almost all lumber or pulp mills. Check what chemicals Georgia Pacific is releasing off the coast of Oregon.
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Green light for the 3rd Annual Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic. Event organizers extended the holding period due to a lack of sizable swell, rather surfable swell, “This is the first real swell of the season that is not combined with hurricane force winds.”
The event has sparked controversy in the past namely about the lack of Oregon surfers involved. Although organizers claim this year to be different, “Oregon is well represented this year, as well. Dave Mcgill and Joel Smith are coming from Seaside, OR. Skiz Doudt was born and raised on the Oregon coast and is partnered with Hawaii Chava Greenlee.” However there are no Lincoln City local represented in this year’s event.
With a predicted 20′ @ 18secs and light winds out of the SSE we might see some rather nice waves. Stay tuned…
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A new Pacific Northwest surfing blog featuring multiple authors covering surfing, the environment, art and randomness. It is our purpose to build a community around our unique culture of surfing in the Pacific Northwest. This blog is a collection of different thoughts and ideas from different authors of all different fields connected through the common thread of surfing.
Check out SurfPioneer.com for the latest Pacific Northwest surfing news and surf forecasts.
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