Tag Archives: Oregon Sea Grant

February events to showcase OSU’s and Oregon Sea Grant’s marine research and outreach

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1/22/18

By Tiffany Woods

CORVALLIS, Ore. – As part of its 150th anniversary, Oregon State University will highlight its decades of marine-related research and public outreach Feb. 12-24 with a variety of free tours and talks on campus and along the coast.

The southern view from Heceta Head.

The Sea Grant Festival will showcase OSU’s and Oregon Sea Grant’s marine research and outreach. (Photo by Tiffany Woods)

The OSU150 Sea Grant Festival will take place in Corvallis, Portland, Newport, Port Orford, Coos Bay and Astoria. It will include presentations by scientists, tours of the Hatfield Marine Science Center, a taste test of fresh versus frozen fish, and screenings of an OSU-produced documentary about coral reefs. Information about the events is online. Some have limited capacity and require registration.

Some of the talks and tours will be offered by people who either work for Oregon Sea Grant or whose work has been funded by the program, which has been based at OSU since 1971.

“Oregon Sea Grant works on many issues facing our coast, from engaging with the fishing industry to helping communities prepare for hazards,” said the program’s director, Shelby Walker. “We serve as a neutral third party, bringing people together and providing the science and information they need to make informed decisions. We also fund marine-related research at universities throughout Oregon, have more than a dozen Extension specialists along the coast and in Corvallis, and operate the public education wing of the Hatfield Marine Science Center.”

Marine Education Coordinator position now open

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Oregon Sea Grant is seeking a Marine Education Coordinator. This is a full-time (1.00 FTE), 12-month, fixed-term professional faculty position. Reappointment is at the discretion of the Director.

HMSC Visitor Center entrance

The Oregon Sea Grant-operated Visitor Center at HMSC. (Photo by Tiffany Woods)

Located at OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, Oregon, this position serves as the coordinator for the Oregon Sea Grant (OSG) K-12 marine education program, planning and facilitating educational experiences.

This position is responsible to the Education Program Manager and works closely with the instructors/educators. This position also works directly with K-12 teachers, home-school educators and other visiting groups to plan and schedule marine educational experiences appropriate to their learning needs.

The Marine Education Coordinator leads marine science classes, labs, camps and other programs throughout the year and provides support and instruction for educator workshops and other grant-funded projects.

This position is also responsible for oversight and upkeep of OSG classrooms, educational supplies and equipment.

Occasional travel, weekend and evening work may be required.

For full consideration, apply by January 18, 2018.

Applications now being accepted for 2019-20 Knauss Marine Policy Fellowships

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Oregon Sea Grant is now accepting applications for the 2019-2020 Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship. Applications are due February 23, 2018. In order to register for our new online application system, eSeaGrant, please email a brief declaration of interest to eseagrant@oregonstate.edu by February 9, 2018.

Knauss Fellow Melissa Errend in Washington, D.C.

Melissa Errend stands on the steps of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Errend was a 2016-17 Knauss Fellow in the office of U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell. (Photo by Dylan McDowell)

The Knauss Fellowship Program provides a unique education experience to graduate students by matching fellows with hosts in the legislative branch, the executive branch, or appropriate associations and institutions located in the Washington, D.C., area for one year.

Oregon Sea Grant will host a brief, informational webinar about our NOAA and Sea Grant Winter Graduate Fellowship Opportunities on Friday, January 5, 2018, from 10:00 to 10:30 a.m. Pacific. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Register here.

Learn more about Oregon Sea Grant’s fellowship opportunities.

Visitor Center at Hatfield Center to close Dec. 5 for maintenance

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11/21/2017

by Mark Floyd

The Visitor Center at Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center, which annually draws some 150,000 visitors, will close on Dec. 5 for maintenance and renovation.

HMSC Visitor Center entrance

Oregon Sea Grant’s Visitor Center at HMSC will close for maintenance on Dec. 5. (Photo by Tiffany Woods)

The Visitor Center’s front exhibits and auditorium are tentatively scheduled to reopen on Feb. 1, though there will be no public access to the back exhibits. The rest of the Visitor Center, which is operated by Oregon Sea Grant, is scheduled to reopen on March 25.

“A couple of the larger tanks in the back exhibits need to be re-secured to the foundation, and we’ll take the opportunity to do some additional plumbing and renovation,” said Bob Cowen, director of the Newport-based HMSC. “We’re sorry for the inconvenience, but the maintenance is overdue.”

Some of the Visitor Center’s exhibits include a large octopus tank, tanks with near- and offshore sea life, touch pools, coral tanks, displays featuring marine studies and current research, three wave tanks, an augmented sand table, and a variety of other hands-on educational exhibits.

‘State of the Coast’ conference set for Oct. 28 in Florence

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10-13-17

By Tiffany Woods

Registration has opened for Oregon Sea Grant’s annual State of the Coast conference, which will be held Oct. 28 in Florence.

Shelby Walker addresses the audience at Oregon Sea Grant’s State of the Coast Conference at Gleneden Beach in 2016. She is the director of Oregon Sea Grant. (Photo by Charles Robinson)

Billed as Oregon’s coastal conference for everyone, the event aims to bring together the public, scientists, fishermen, resource managers, teachers, students and conservationists. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn, network and talk about the current status and future of Oregon’s marine environment.

The keynote speaker will be Rick Spinrad, the chief scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 2014 to January 2017. He was also the vice president of research at Oregon State University from 2010 to 2014.

Under this year’s theme of “innovation,” presentations and hands-on activities will include the following topics:

  • invasive European green crabs
  • pyrosomes, the jelly-like, tube-shaped organisms that were seen off the Oregon coast in unusually large numbers this year
  • coastal governance and coastal-related legislation
  • the science behind fresh and frozen seafood
  • innovations in observing marine mammals
  • marine gear and technology
  • engaging communities in art
  • tracking local and global seafood across the supply chain
  • forecasting ocean conditions for recreation, profit and safety
  • managing estuaries for everyone

Marie Kowalski, a former master’s student at Oregon State University, talks about her research on mitigating microplastics at Oregon Sea Grant’s State of the Coast Conference in Coos Bay in 2015. (Photo by Anne Farrell-Matthews)

Additionally, students from various universities in Oregon will talk about their coastal research. Also, a coastal chef will demonstrate how to prepare various types of seafood.

Registration in advance is recommended as space is limited. Cost is $35 for the public and $25 for students. It includes refreshments, lunch and a raffle ticket. The conference begins at 8:30 a.m. and concludes with a reception that starts at 4 p.m. For more information and to register, visit www.stateofthecoast.com. The event will take place at the Florence Events Center at 715 Quince St.

Video: Searching for microplastics in razor clams and oysters

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Britta Baechler looks at harvested razor clams.

Britta Baechler (right) looks at harvested razor clams.

Sept. 13, 2017

A new video from Oregon Sea Grant shows how researchers at Portland State University are inspecting the guts and tissues of razor clams and oysters along the Oregon coast for microplastics, which can come from foams, tiny beads in facial creams, synthetic fibers from clothing, and disintegrating plastic bags.

Shucked oyster in lab

An oyster is shucked at a lab at Portland State University.

“Our goal is to figure out if we have them in our oysters and clams, and if so, are they at problematic levels?” said Britta Baechler, a PSU master’s student who is working on the Oregon Sea Grant-funded project under the guidance of PSU marine ecologist Elise Granek.

Oysters and clams, Baechler explained in the four-minute video, are indiscriminate filter feeders and so they may ingest a piece of plastic and not be able to get rid of it. Microplastics, which are defined as less than 5 mm, are of concern because they can attract chemicals, which might harm animals if eaten.

dissolved razor clam in Petri dish

Britta Baechler shows a dissolved razor clam in a Petri dish.

With help from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Baechler dug up razor clams at nine sites along the Oregon coast and bought oysters at five locations to see if there are areas where microplastics are more prevalent. She collected the shellfish in the spring of 2017 and again this summer to see if microplastics are more common during certain times of the year.

Once the oysters and clams were gathered, they were taken to Granek’s lab at PSU where they were measured, weighed, shucked and frozen so they could later be dissolved in potassium hydroxide. This process leaves a clear liquid that contains only sand and any plastics that may be present. The researchers hope to have dissolved all of the bivalves by the end of September. For the ones that have already been dissolved, they’ve been analyzing the liquefied remains under a microscope to see if they find microplastics, but results are not in yet.

“Ultimately, we’re hoping that this study brings awareness to Oregonians and even visitors to the state of Oregon that plastics that we use in our daily lives make their way into the environment,” Baechler said in the video. “We’re also hoping that our partners, like Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and other state agencies, might take this information to learn about hot spots for microplastics to address the problem.”

Photos of Baechler and her work can be downloaded from this album on Oregon Sea Grant’s Flickr page.

The video was produced by Tiffany Woods and filmed and edited by Gustavo Garcia.

New video: ‘Tsunami Quests’ help coastal residents and visitors prepare for major earthquake and tsunami

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Scientists say there is a 30 percent chance of a massive earthquake and tsunami striking the Pacific Northwest in the next 50 years. One way coastal residents and visitors can prepare for such a disaster is to learn evacuation routes.

A new video from Oregon Sea Grant, “Tsunami Quests,” reveals how the program is helping coastal residents and visitors prepare. One way it does this is by teaching people how to create and use self-guided evacuation routes modeled after a treasure hunt.

In these hunts, which are called Quests, walkers follow a map and a series of educational clues about their surroundings to reach higher ground. At the end, they find a hidden box that contains a guest book and rubber stamp to mark their accomplishment. The aim is that by exploring these routes for fun in their free time, residents and visitors will later know where to flee in the event of a tsunami.

Background

In February 2016, Oregon Sea Grant (OSG) organized a series of workshops at the Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) in Newport, Oregon, to bring educators, state parks personnel, researchers and emergency management experts together to discuss how communities can prepare for tsunamis. Participants also learned how to help students create a tsunami Quest.

In the spring of 2016, workshop attendees imparted their knowledge to 120 Newport seventh-graders at HMSC. The students listened to presentations from engineers and geologists, studied tsunami inundation maps and interpretive signs, calculated how fast they would need to walk to escape, and learned about soil liquefaction. They also walked an evacuation route that starts at the OSG-operated Visitor Center at HMSC, which is expected to be flooded during a tsunami, and ends about a mile away, atop Safe Haven Hill. The students created a Tsunami Quest for that route and tested the activity on community members and two classes of fifth-graders in Newport. Their Quest is online (“HMSC Tsunami Quest,” http://bit.ly/2s0O1YI). To date, nearly 300 people have walked the HMSC Tsunami Quest.

Partners

Partners in the Tsunami Quests effort include the Lincoln County School District, Oregon State University, Oregon Parks and Recreation, Hatfield Marine Science Center, the Gray Family Foundation, and the OSUEA Hoecker Award.

Watch

You can watch the three-minute video here:

Tsunami Quests was filmed and edited by Vanessa Cholewczynski and Tiffany Woods.

New video reveals how blood work can be used to identify sick sea stars

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A new video from Oregon Sea Grant (OSG), Sea Star Health: Using Blood Work to Identify Sick Sea Stars, reveals how OSG and Oregon State University created the first-ever blood panel for ochre sea stars to use as a baseline for detecting sick ones. The tool could help aquarists treat them before they succumb to Sea Star Wasting Syndrome, which causes their limbs to fall off.

The cause of the syndrome, which was first seen in the Pacific Northwest in 2013, is unknown. OSU veterinary student Heather Renee Srch-Thaden created the blood panel under the guidance of Dr. Tim Miller-Morgan, an aquatic veterinarian with OSG Extension, and Dr. Susan Tornquist, dean of OSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

The video was filmed at OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, where the public can touch and learn about sea stars in a tidepool exhibit at the HMSC Visitor Center. It was filmed and edited by OSG videographer Vanessa Cholewczynski, with photos by Tim Miller-Morgan and Heather Renee Srch-Thaden.

You can watch the four-minute video on OSG’s YouTube channel, here.

Opening frame from the video, "Sea Star Health: Using Blood Work to Detect Sick Sea Stars"

This new video from Oregon Sea Grant reveals how researchers are using blood samples from sea stars to detect signs of disease.

Oregon Sea Grant director provides update on budget challenge

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An open letter from Shelby Walker, director of Oregon Sea Grant, addresses the White House’s proposed elimination of Sea Grant and what it might mean for Oregonians and people in 30 other coastal and Great Lakes states around the country. Below is an excerpt from the one-page letter; you can read the full version at the link provided below.

“Oregon Sea Grant has been a key partner with Oregonians in working towards solutions for complex coastal and ocean issues, including fisheries, hazards, and energy, for over 45 years through research, extension, education, and communication. Nationwide, the Sea Grant program works in 31 states, including Oregon, and two territories to create or sustain more than 20,000 jobs and 2,900 businesses annually. In 2015, the national program’s $67.3 million budget generated an economic impact of $575 million, which was an 854 percent return on investment.”

Here is a PDF of the entire letter: DirectorLetter

Oregon residents: Take the Oregon Coastal Values survey

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Photo of Oregon coast

A research team at Portland State University is conducting a survey of Oregonians to find out how Oregon residents use and value the coast and ocean. The survey asks for your opinions on marine management activities and your preferences for future management. It also includes an online mapping activity, allowing you to indicate places on the coast that are important to you and to recommend changes in the management of areas.

The goal of the survey is to reach a broad set of adult residents who have lived in Oregon for a year or more. The research team also wants to make sure they hear from people across the state, including eastern and southern Oregon. Please feel free to share this link with others via e-mail, social media, or any other way you feel comfortable.

This project is funded by Oregon Sea Grant, and findings will be shared in a final report to managers, researchers, and the public. All responses will be anonymous, and only summaries of findings will be shared.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Paul Manson, a Ph.D. student researcher at Portland State University: mansonp@pdx.edu. You may also contact the project’s principal investigator, Elise Granek, at graneke@pdx.edu. The research team is also on Twitter.