A2
THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2019
IN BRIEF
Cannon Beach fi re district dedicates
communication room to Aya
CANNON BEACH — The Cannon Beach Rural
Fire Protection District has dedicated its communica-
tion room as a memorial for Alfred Aya.
Aya, who died last year, was the founding father of
the community tsunami warning system. He came up
with the distinctive “mooing” sound.
He spent nearly 30 years serving the fi re district and
was elected to the fi re district’s board.
“As his voice lives on in our warning system mes-
sages we dedicate the communication room, which
houses all of his many hours of study and work, to the
memory of his name,” Gary Smith, the fi re district’s
board president, said in a letter on behalf of the board.
Saddle Mountain access
to close for repairs
Public access to Saddle Mountain State Natural
Area will be closed Nov. 25 to Dec. 6.
Construction crews will be making repairs to the
park’s entrance road. For more information, visit the
park’s website.
Clatsop County Fair Board
seeks applications
Clatsop County is seeking applications from people
interested in joining the fair board.
There are three open positions, each with three-year
terms that expire Dec. 31, 2022.
The fair board is responsible for the management
of the Clatsop County Fair and Expo and organizes the
annual county fair. Meetings are on the fi rst Tuesday
of each month.
To apply, visit the Clatsop County Manager’s
Offi ce at 800 Exchange St., Suite 410, or apply online
through the county’s website.
Applications are due by Dec. 13. The Board of
Commissioners will make the appointments.
— The Astorian
Analyst explains Willapa
coho fi shing closure
RAYMOND, Wash. — The Washington Depart-
ment of Fish and Wildlife has closed Willapa Bay and
its surrounding tributaries to all salmon fi shing for the
second year in a row.
According Chad Herring, a state analyst, the clo-
sure was implemented because of record low native
coho returns.
“Right now we have a run size update that is sug-
gesting we are seeing only about 40% of what was pre-
dicted preseason,” Herring said. “So we have down-
graded the run.”
— Chinook Observer
ON PATROL
Madeline Kalbach
A bald eagle patrols the shores of Willapa Bay.
DEATHS
Nov. 14, 2019
EWALD,
Patricia
Ann, 97, of Astoria, died
in Astoria. Caldwell’s
Luce-Layton Mortuary
of Astoria is in charge of
the arrangements.
Nov. 13, 2019
TREMONTI,
Mer-
ilyn, 80, of Warren-
ton, died in Warrenton.
Caldwell’s
Luce-Lay-
ton Mortuary of Asto-
ria is in charge of the
arrangements
Nov. 12, 2019
FOSS,
Orocia
“Rosie,” 83, of Asto-
ria, died in Astoria.
Hughes-Ransom Mor-
tuary is in charge of the
arrangements.
SHANE, Gloria Faye,
90, of Astoria, died in
Astoria.
Caldwell’s
Luce-Layton Mortuary
of Astoria is in charge of
the arrangements.
Nov. 11, 2019
HUTCHISON, Mark,
59, of Seaside, died in
Seaside, Oregon. Cald-
well’s Funeral & Crema-
tion Arrangement Center
of Seaside is in charge of
the arrangements.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
MONDAY
Knappa School Board,
5:30 p.m., Knappa High
School library, 41535 Old
U.S. Highway 30.
Astoria City Council,
7 p.m., City Hall, 1095
Duane St.
Jewell School Board,
7 p.m., Jewell School
library, 83874 Oregon
Highway 103.
TUESDAY
Union Health District of
Clatsop County Board,
8 a.m., Providence Seaside
Hospital, Education Center,
Room B, 725 S. Wahanna
Road, Seaside.
Port of Astoria Commis-
sion, 4 p.m., Port offi ces, 10
Pier 1 Suite 209.
Astoria Historic Land-
marks Commission,
5:15 p.m., City Hall, 1095
Duane St.
Sunset Empire Park and
Recreation District Board
of Directors, 5:15 p.m.,
Bob Chisholm Community
Center, 1225 Avenue A,
Seaside.
Seaside School District
Board of Directors, 6 p.m.,
1801 S. Franklin.
Seaside Planning Com-
mission, 7 p.m., work
session, City Hall, 989
Broadway.
Shoreline Sanitary
District Board, 7 p.m.,
Gearhart Hertig Station,
33496 West Lake Lane,
Warrenton.
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Ban on fl avored nicotine and
cannabis vape products on hold
By FEDOR ZARKHIN
The Oregonian
Gov. Kate Brown’s six-
month ban on both fl avored
nicotine and cannabis vape
products is on hold with new
rulings Thursday by the Ore-
gon Court of Appeals.
“We’re very happy,” said
Andrew DeWeese, the Green
Light Law Group attorney
representing Herban Indus-
tries, which sued over the
cannabis vape oil portion of
the ban. “It’s a win for the
cannabis industry and it is,
frankly, a win for the Oregon
consumer.”
The court a month ago
temporarily halted the ban
on only fl avored nicotine
vaping products. It now
has extended that stay and
granted a stay covering the
ban on fl avored cannabis
vaping products as well.
The decisions are a major
blow to Brown’s efforts to
address the vaping-related
lung illness epidemic.
“This gives us some
surety that the state is in the
wrong,” said Paul Bates,
owner of one of the compa-
nies that sued the state.
Brown moved to ban
all fl avored vape prod-
ucts through an executive
order in October, following
two deaths in Oregon from
severe lung illnesses con-
nected to vaping.
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Nationwide, nearly 2,200
people have fallen ill in the
epidemic. Federal health
offi cials have said that illicit
vape oils with marijuana’s
psychoactive chemical THC
are most directly impli-
cated, although some victims
reported using only nico-
tine products. As of Nov. 12,
17 Oregonians have fallen
ill, six who used only nico-
tine vape products and fi ve
who used only THC prod-
ucts, according to the Ore-
gon Health Authority.
The governor’s offi ce said
the courts two stays were
“unfortunate,” given the that
threat both the lung illness
epidemic and the growth in
vaping among Oregon youth
pose to public health. The
governor will keep look-
ing for long-term solutions
to protect people from vap-
ing-related lung illnesses,
spokesman Charles Boyle
said in a written statement.
“Governor Brown con-
tinues to urge Oregonians to
heed the public health warn-
ing of the Oregon Health
Authority and to stop vaping
immediately,” Boyle said.
The stay on the fl avored
cannabis vape ban was fi rst
reported by Willamette
Week.
The Court of Appeals
action on fl avored cannabis
vapes came in response to
a suit by the Oakland-based
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company Herban Industries
against the Oregon Liquor
Control Commission, which
licenses and regulates the
state’s marijuana industry.
The agency had moved to
enact Brown’s order by ban-
ning all THC vape oil prod-
ucts containing fl avor chemi-
cals, called terpenes, derived
from anything but marijuana.
The OLCC had said that this
would amount to about 10%
of the marijuana market.
The court was convinced
by the company’s argument
that it would suffer irrepara-
ble harm.
Herban Industries sells
vape oil products under the
brand name ‘Winberry’ that,
according to the order, con-
tain a proprietary blend of
terpenes that mimic those
found in cannabis. But
because those terpenes aren’t
derived from actual cannabis
plants, the ban forbade the
company from selling them.
More than 80% of the
company’s revenue comes
from fl avored Winberry vape
cartridges, according to the
order. The company argued
that because the products are
so fundamental to the busi-
ness, a ban could force it
to fi re many of its employ-
ees. The Court of Appeals
agreed.
“The court is persuaded
that petitioner has demon-
strated that irreparable harm
is likely to result unless
enforcement of the rule is
stayed,” the order said.
The OLCC argued that
halting the ban would harm
the public, but the court was
not convinced, saying there
is no evidence connecting
non-marijuana fl avors to the
lung illnesses.
In a separate case, the
Court of Appeals found
that the state most likely
did not have the standing to
ban fl avored nicotine vape
products.
That case was led by the
trade group Vapor Technol-
ogy Association, three Ore-
gon vape companies and
Bates, owner of the Portland
vape shop Division Vapor.
The Oregon Health
Authority in October wrote
temporary rules to enact the
fl avored nicotine vape prod-
ucts portion of the gover-
nor’s executive order. The
Court of Appeals said that
Brown’s command was
likely not enough to give the
agency the power to write
the rules.
The Court of Appeals
concluded that vape shops
would likely suffer serious
harm if the fl avored vape
product ban remained in
place.
The companies argued
that the rule could “cause
the entire industry in Ore-
gon to be destroyed,” the
court order read. The health
authority did not dispute that
claim in court.
The court cited the basic
facts surrounding the vap-
ing-related lung illnesses
to reject the agency’s argu-
ment that a ban is necessary
to protect the public. Most of
the lung illness cases nation-
ally involved cannabis vape
products, the court order
said – not nicotine products.
Moreover, the court order
said, no evidence has been
presented connecting fl a-
vored vape products to lung
injuries.
The Vapor Technol-
ogy Association’s execu-
tive director, Tony Abboud,
lauded the ruling.
“As we’ve said, bans
don’t work,” Abboud wrote
in a statement. “They never
have.”
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