Oregon Sea Grant

Ocean users and marine scientists both have connections to the sea. This research explores how the nature of their connection to the sea leads to different perceptions of risk and comfort with uncertainty, and how these differences might be important to consider when one group has information another group needs.

Sociologists who have studied how people in the Northwest respond to proposals for large energy facilities in their communities point to factors that could make it significantly harder for local communities to have a say in the development of these facilities under current conditions.

Commercial fishing is deeply embedded in the economy and culture of many coastal communities. Recent ecological, economic, and regulatory changes impacting fisheries are likely to have important consequences for this industry and the communities it supports. The objective of this study is to improve understanding of coastal community resilience through examination of the graying of the fleet phenomenon in two fishing communities in Oregon. This phenomenon has been studied extensively in Alaska, but little is known about this trend in the Pacific Northwest.

Commercial fishing is a culturally and economically significant industry on the Oregon coast. The importance of this industry to human communities is often neglected in fisheries research, with economic and ecological data being favored by managers and decision makers. Recent observations in many coastal communities have indicated aging of fishermen and a lack of young people entering the industry, causing a “graying effect” in commercial fishing fleets.

Natural resource management and policy is ideally informed by the best available science. Natural resource researchers ideally participate in broader impacts activities to extend the reach of their best available research. However, there are many cultural, institutional, and practical barriers to participating in broader impact activities and to incorporating science into natural resource use decisions. Researcher-​stakeholder engagement is one proposed solution to overcome such barriers and to achieve both broader impact and science-based policy goals.

The ocean off Oregon’s coast is a busy place with many activities occurring that can sometimes be in competition or cooperation. Deciding how new uses fit with existing ocean uses is complex, but there are some tools available to help decision-​-​‐makers. Generating energy from waves is an emerging ocean use and the human dimension effects require further study.