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About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (July 24, 2020)
T HE C OLUMBIA P RESS 4 SOLVE: Adoptive beach ‘parents’ sought Continued from Page 1 get more focus now, include: • Summer Beach Cleanup Series – This program has SOLVE staff helping fami- lies and small groups plan smaller cleanups. To partic- ipate, volunteers are given a beach, a good day and time when tides won’t be a prob- lem, and provided with sup- plies. • Beach and Riverside Cleanups – These will be statewide and scheduled Sept. 19 through Oct. 4 and focus on litter removal and habitat restoration in one of the state’s watersheds. • Oregon Adopt-A-Beach – Volunteers commit to clean- ing “their beach” at least three times a year with SOLVE staff planning and supplying support. Sixty of the state’s beaches have been adopted, but there are gaps. No beach north of Del Rey in Clatsop County has been adopted, for in- Your financial partner for today, tomorrow, and the future. We’re not going anywhere and your money is safe with us. WE’VE GOT YOUR . K C BA How to help To learn more, go to the nonprofit group’s website, solveoregon.org. To apply to adopt a stretch of beach, go to the website, click on the “What We Do” tab near the top of the page and then click on “Oregon Adopt-A-Beach.” stance. “Fort Stevens, they’ve been amazing partners,” Schmidt said. In prior years, they’ve been involved with organizing cleanups and participating. This year, the park is unable to help as much. “We are looking at ways we can reduce the impact Continued from Page 1 were children younger than 10, two were women in their 30s, and one was a man in his 50s. On July 20, three cases were reported. They are a woman in her 50s and a woman in her 40s, both living in north county, and a man in his 40s living in south county. Statewide, there had been a 85 W Marine Dr. • Astoria 2315 N Roosevelt Dr • Seaside 1771 Ensign Ln • Warrenton 503.842.7523 • www.tlcfcu.org fibrefamily A DIVISION OF CREDIT UNION ILikeTLC Federally Insured By NCUA on state staff as they’ve recently had significant cuts to their staff,” Schmidt said. Kate Besse, who lives in Schmidt Surf Pines, has participated in the cleanups for four years and is beach captain for Sun- set Beach volunteers. “My motto that I tell chil- dren is, ‘Even the tiniest piece of plastic has met the end of its journey when it lands in your bag,’ ” she said. “They are making a huge dif- ference and saving the lives of wildlife.” Besse had 59 volunteers working her area on July 5, the only organized SOLVE beach cleanups this year. One of her most interest- ing “finds”: a Prince Charm- ing toy. Others have found shoes, bicycle parts, and bot- tles and snack food wrappers from across the globe. While this year is more challenging, SOLVE remains focused on its primary objec- tive. “We definitely were eager to clean the beach,” Schmidt said. “But at same time, we’re listening to the gov- ernor’s advice and knew we couldn’t bring people togeth- er. We knew we had to come up with a new plan.” At least for now, the group will seek family-unit sized groups for cleanups instead of the thousands from previous years. And there will be more education shared about ocean and waterway conservation. Pandemic: Children 5 and older must wear masks s tateWide Zaheen and Zain: Fibre Family Members Since 2019 Ju ly 2 4 , 2 0 2 0 total of 15,393 cases with 271 deaths as of Wednesday. The number of tests that have come back positive for COVID-19 rose to 6.6 per- cent, according to Oregon Health Authority. Large outbreaks are making up a smaller proportion of recent cases, while sporadic cases -- those not traced to another case -- have increased, con- sistent with diffuse commu- nity spread. An outbreak of 23 cases have been linked to a Walmart Dis- tribution Center in Herm- iston. An investigation of cases there began June 30, but Oregon Health Authority didn’t release news of the out- break until Tuesday, when it reached the public disclosure threshold of 20. n eW Mask rules Face coverings, or masks, are required on children 5 and older beginning today, July 24. The previous rule had only required those 12 and older to wear masks. The new order applies to all indoor public spaces and outdoors, when physical dis- tancing isn’t possible and it includes children in kinder- garten and above when they return to school in Septem- ber. Oregon Health Authori- ty has created a web page, healthoregon.org/masks, that aims to be a clearinghouse of information about face coverings and masks, from requirements to frequently Continued on Page 6