Breaking Waves

Most Oregonians know something about invasive species, but they may not be sure what to do about it, a new study suggests. Conducted by Oregon Sea Grant for the Oregon Invasive Species Council (in partnership with OPB, SOLV, and The Nature Conservancy), the study used surveys and focus groups to gauge how much Oregonians know and care about invasives, and how willing they are to take action. The full study report is due out this fall, but a two-page summary of findings is available now:

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Stephen Brandt, director of NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory since 1997, has been named the Director of the Oregon Sea Grant Program, based at Oregon State University (OSU). He will officially begin his Oregon duties in January 2009.

Brandt replaces Robert Malouf, Oregon Sea Grant director from 1991 until his retirement in June. Jay Rasmussen, Sea Grant’s associate director and Extension program leader, is serving as interim director.

An oceanographer and freshwater scientist by training, Brandt earned his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and has had several academic appointments, including as a professor with the University of Maryland’s Chesapeake Biological Laboratory and as Director of the Great Lakes Center for Environmental Research and Education with the State University of New York College at Buffalo.

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Visitors to the Oregon coast may find a new publication from Oregon Sea Grant useful when strolling the docks or watching commercial fishers at work.

Boats of the Oregon Coast, a pocket-size field guide, depicts and describes 18 different fishing and service vessels seen along the Oregon coast. The booklet’s drawings, concise descriptions and size make it ideal for port and marina tours from Astoria to Brookings.

Also included in the 52-page booklet is a short history of Oregon fisheries, illustrated with historic photos and accompanied by a timeline of important dates in the development of Oregon’s commercial fishing industry.

Copies may be purchased for $4.95 each plus $1 shipping and handling from Sea Grant Communications, 541-737-4849, or from our e-commerce store on the Web. It is also available in several bookstores and gift shops along the coast.

Boats of the Oregon Coast was illustrated by Stefania Padalino and written by Oregon State University Sea Grant Extension faculty Pat Corcoran, Ginny Goblirsch, Paul Heikkila, Kaety Hildenbrand, Steve Theberge, Michael Thompson and Jim Waldvogel.

The following publications are available from
http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/sgpubs/newpubs.html

Barriers and Opportunities for Low Impact Development: Case Studies from Three Oregon Communities

GardenSmart Oregon: a guide to non-invasive plants

On the Lookout for Aquatic Invaders: Identification Guide for the Pacific Northwest

Oregon Coastal Access Guide: A Mile-by-Mile Guide to Scenic and Recreational Attractions (2nd edition)

Proceedings of the West Coast Symposium on the Effects of Tide Gates on Estuarine Habitats and Fishes

Oregon Sea Grant is advertising a new professional faculty position to coordinate K-12 marine education programs at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, on the central Oregon Coast. The person hired will manage a team of marine educators, coordinate k-12 classroom instruction at the HMSC visitor center, and work with faculty to design, promote, implement, and evaluate the center’s marine education programs. The application deadline is July 11, 2008.

Read the position announcement and apply on line through Oregon State University’s Job Search site

Read more about HMSC education programs

Oregon Sea Grant and the Oregon Department of Water Resources are teaming up to offer a new graduate fellowship in well-water outreach. The application deadline is June 10.

The fellowship is available for a Masters level graduate student at an Oregon College or University who will develop and evaluate outreach and education approaches that improve the skills of well owners to monitor water levels and understand their water-use patterns.

The chosen applicant will receive a stipend of up to $2,500 a month for three months of full-time work at the ODRW office in Salem during the summer of 2008, plus a nine-month part-time stipend for the academic year beginning in fall 2008.  Frequent trips to Salem will be required during the school year, and the project involves  significant field work in the central Willamette Valley.

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Oregon Sea Grant has announced a new scholarship that will support one student working toward a graduate degree in any field of marine studies compatible with the program’s mandate and areas of interest.

Interested students from any Oregon University System institution have until June 20 to apply for the Robert E. Malouf scholarship, named for the program’s recently retired director.

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Scotch broom, Japanese eelgrass, Quagga mussels, and Oregonians: How are they related? The first three are non-native, invasive species of plants and animals -  and  Oregonians often unknowingly spread these and a growing number of other invaders. But they can also stop invasive species before they spread.

A year-long educational effort to prevent the spread of invasive species in Oregon ramps up this month, with the premiere of a new documentary film produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting. The hour-long documentary, “The Silent Invasion,” has its OPB broadcast premiere on Earth Day, April 22 at 8 p.m.

But Oregon Sea Grant’s contributions of time and expertise to the production is bringing special advance screenings to Corvallis, on April 9, and Nweport, on April 17.

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Visit our new Marine Invaders page for more tools to aid in the fight to identify and control the spread of invasive animals and plants.

A fast-track “listening and learning” process that drew nearly 800 people to meetings on Oregon’s coast has produced more than 1,700 separate comments on the question of establishing marine reserves in the state’s territorial waters.

Oregon Sea Grant, which was asked to conduct the outreach effort, will deliver the comments this week to the state’s Ocean Policy Advisory Council. The council is expected to use the report to help formulate recommendations for addressing Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s goal of creating a limited number of marine reserves – areas of the near-shore sea where fishing and other extractive activities are prohibited - off the Oregon coast. …

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• Download the full 267-page report

Many Oregon communities are facing rapid population growth and increases in housing and industrial construction, without a matching increase in the resources necessary to manage such growth and make wise land use decisions. One result may be added stress from increased stormwater runoff on already overtaxed water management systems.

To help communities address such issues, Oregon Sea Grant at Oregon State University (OSU) has published Barriers and Opportunities for Low Impact Development: Case Studies from Three Oregon Communities.

More information: http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/communications/releases.html#lowimpact