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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 2016)
9A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2016 King tides: Next king tide event expected Jan. 10 to Jan 12 Continued from Page 1A The city also sends staff to watch for debris block- ages during high flows under the city’s bridges and for ero- sion around its sewage plant, located next to the mouth of the Necanicum River. McDow- ell said the river’s flow comes right up to the edge of the plant, where a couple of years ago the city installed a barri- cade to protect against erosion. No storms, no problem Werst and other local pub- lic works officials said king tides in themselves don’t pose an immediate threat, unless combined with high winds and rain during storms. The effects of this week’s king tides, unac- companied by foul weather, were benign. “On the Oregon Coast in the wintertime, we have sea level rise of 18 inches in the winter, because of various rea- sons,” said Patrick Corcoran, a coastal hazards specialist with Oregon State University’s Extension Service in Astoria. “When you combine that with king tides, that’s when things start flooding.” In Warrenton, the king tide peaked at more than 10.7 feet in the Skipanon River Tues- day. Collin Stelzig, Warren- ton’s city engineer, said the city can experience tides of 11 feet amid storm surges mul- tiple times of year, without issues. “We’re protected by levees, so we don’t necessarily have an impact from these tides,” he said. Stelzig said the city has been part of the Federal Emer- gency Management Agen- cy’s National Flood Insurance Program since 1978 and faced tides as high as nearly 12.6 feet in 1983, but has never had a claim for flooding. Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Tuesday’s king tide, which reached more than 10.7 feet in the Skipanon River around noon, rises up the levees surrounding the Astoria Regional Airport in Warrenton. City Engineer Collin Stelzig said the levees adequately protect Warrenton from much higher water levels than this week’s king tides brought. Tracking change Rising land, seas The situation in the Pacific Northwest isn’t as bad as Flor- ida, where one-eighth of the homes could be underwater by 2100 if sea levels rise as pre- dicted, according to real estate company Zillow. “Our geography is differ- ent,” said Meg Reed, a coastal shores specialist with the Ore- gon Coastal Management Pro- gram. “We don’t have a lot of low-lying developed beaches like Florida.” Sea level rise is mitigated Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Rising tidal surges, like the 10-plus-foot king tides that hit the Astoria-Warrenton area Monday through Thursday, can help hydrate restored wetlands like Daggett Point in the foreground, but can put pressure on diked land. on much of the West Coast by the Juan de Fuca plate slid- ing under the North American plate, causing a tectonic uplift of between 1.5 and 3 milli- Lead testing: Database allows public to look up lead test results Continued from Page 1A It doesn’t account for any expenses associated with mit- igation of lead contamination. The widespread testing fol- lowed widespread media cov- erage of a scandal in Port- land Public Schools over lead in drinking water that went unreported. In August, the state Board of Education — at the behest of Gov. Kate Brown – approved a rule that requires school dis- tricts to submit a plan for test- ing for lead in water and other toxins in school environments and to report any results to the public. The rule doesn’t century to 3.1 millimeters per year since 1993. “We know that we have a very dynamic winter climate, so even a little bit of sea level rise means those storms will get more intense,” Reed said, add- ing chronic issues like erosion and landslides could worsen. Add to the list of prob- lems a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake, which the state Department of Geology and Mineral Industries esti- mates could sink the land 3 to 7 feet, immediately reversing hundreds of years of tectonic uplift. Reed said improving resil- iency to tsunamis will also help with issues of rising sea levels and erosion. She previ- ously worked as a coastal fel- low with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra- tion for the Coastal Manage- ment Program, researching areas of the coast that could benefit from shore armoring. Her successor in the position, Julie Sepanik, is looking at the threats facing coastal and estu- arine infrastructure from king tides. require actual testing. Education and health authorities unveiled a data- base (http://arcg.is/2h8WgK5) earlier this month that allows the public to look up lead test results. Lawmakers have said they might consider legislation in 2017 that would require dis- tricts to test for lead in water. New York recently enacted a law requiring schools to test for lead, report results to the public and develop a plan for reducing exposure to the toxin. The Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. meters per year. But at some point, Reed said, sea level rise will likely outpace the tectonic uplift, because of exponen- tially increasing warming. According to a 2012 report from the National Research Council, sea levels on the West Coast could rise 3 to 9 inches by 2030, and 7 to 19 inches by 2050, relative to 2000 lev- els. According to the report, the rate of global sea level rise increased from about 1.7 milli- meters per year during the 20th Reed’s department, the local Surfrider Founda- tion chapter and the Oregon Coastal Shores Conservation Coalition’s CoastWatch group oversee the Oregon King Tides Photo Initiative, a citizen sci- ence effort to document the reach of tides over time. “Because our impacts of sea level rise are not immedi- ate, we have a little more time to rethink how we’re doing development,” she said. Reed said photos from the project have been used by state transportation officials looking at areas of erosion like Beverly Beach, where U.S. Highway 101 runs close to a quickly eroding beachfront cliff. The project asks people in coastal and estuarine areas to take pictures of areas facing erosion and flooding, create contrasting shots at king and regular high tides and submit the photos online. The next king tide event hits Jan. 10 to Jan. 12. After- ward, Reed said, organizers are planning end-of-season parties, including one in Sea- side, to review all the photos. For more information on the program and a schedule of tides, visit www.oregonking- tides.net Lee: ‘I just feel like it’s a big world, and life is short’ Continued from Page 1A “I’ve worked really hard over the last eight years,” Lee said. “It’s a very demand- ing job. It’s time for me to consider some other opportunities.” Lee said he is hopeful someone will want to take over Astoria’s only bike shop, which he prides on surviving the Great Recession, compe- tition from bigger stores and the internet because of cus- tomer service, unique prod- ucts and repairs. “I still think this is a via- ble business for someone,” he said. “It’s a rewarding small business. We’ve shown major growth since the (downturn) in ’08. “There’s always going to be a need for people who fix things.” Part of selling Bikes and Beyond, he said, is to focus on his remaining time with the county commission. Among his other appoint- ments, Lee is chairman of the board for the Columbia River Estuary Study Task- force, Oregon Coastal Zone Management Association and Northwest Oregon Housing Authority. “I like to think I run a good, fair meeting,” Lee said as to why he’s become the head of so many governing bodies. Lee said eight years is a long time for public service. “There’s a lot of really great people who can step up to the plate and be county commis- sioners here,” he said. Dirk Rohne, who served in his last meeting Wednesday after eight years as a county commissioner, echoed Lee’s views. “Sometime it’s time to step aside to allow others the opportunity to serve,” he said. After leaving the commis- sion, Lee said, he would like to travel with his father, Wil- liam, whom he credits for his work ethic. Born in Ellensburg, Wash- ington, and raised in the south Puget Sound region, Lee attended Evergreen State College. He has worked as a technician for the Washington Department of Fish and Wild- life, a fisherman, on farms and as a mechanic in boat- yards, motorcycle and bicy- cle shops. “I’ve got about a seven- to 10-year range on most of the things in my life,” Lee said of his endeavors, including the county commission and man- aging Bikes and Beyond. “I just feel like it’s a big world, and life is short,” he said. “There’s always new opportunities, and I’ve always had a sense of adventure.” Congratulations Stephanie Sievers! Celebrating 20 Years at Wauna Credit Union! Thank you for all you do! Wauna Credit Union waunafcu.org 800-773-3236 Stephanie Sievers- SVP Operations
