May 6, 2016 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com • 3A
RETHINKING BEACHES
Naturalist Neal Maine wants to raise
awareness about ‘amazing phenomenon’
By Lyra Fontaine
Cannon Beach Gazette
Many use Oregon’s sandy shores for
recreational fun in the sun, and there’s
nothing wrong with that, local naturalist
and nature photographer Neal Maine said
in his April 13 lecture, “Beaches: More
than Sand.”
With the increase in visitors, Maine
said a greater understanding of lively
ecological processes and “the wonder of
this amazing phenomenon” happening on
beaches is needed.
He wants to change public perception
of Oregon’s beaches, which were made
accessible to the public, protected from
private development and administered as
a state recreation area in 1967.
“We’re trying to recast the beaches
of Oregon as ecosystems, not just play-
grounds,” Maine said to a rapt audience
gathered in the Cannon Beach Chamber
Hall as part of the city’s “12 Days of Earth
Day” events.
With his late wife, Karen, Maine start-
ed the Haystack Rock Awareness Pro-
gram, which began an oficial program in
1985. Last year, the program celebrated
30 years of educating visitors about the
iconic rock.
Now, Maine hopes to help develop a
strategic campaign called “Beaches are
Alive” to raise public awareness about
beach ecology. For example, instead of
showing visitors how to clam, state parks
could provide lessons about beach ecolo-
gy, Maine said.
He invited the audience to send “ideas,
observations and inspiration” for the pos-
sible program this spring.
As Maine demonstrated with photos and
animated dialogue, beaches are living sys-
tems home to a wide variety of creatures,
including mole crabs, clams, tiny inverte-
brates, kelp, birds and more. Beaches are
unique in that they are inluenced by external
input sources, like material from the ocean.
“The richer your awareness about the
environment and how it works,” he said,
“then the higher the quality of life.”
Maine displayed photos of some
beach-dwelling creatures, including Velel-
la velellas, an example of “population ex-
plosion.”
“You’ve seen more than you’ve ever
wanted to see,” he said.
Meanwhile, razor clams, with their
quick burrowing into the sand, are an ex-
ample of biological specialization. “They
have evolved for that speciic habitat.”
Maine showed photos of gulls “danc-
ing” for their food. He said delicate, spe-
cialized birds may be affected by human
modiications to the beach.
What may look like an oil spill on shores
— a brown, oily substance with frothy bub-
bles — is indeed oil released from photo-
synthesizing algae called diatoms.
“They’re a huge source of solar con-
version,” Maine said, adding that the sub-
stance was made up of “good oil.”
Poet and isherman Dave Densmore.
Senator to seek federal funds for
Seaside-area tsunami safety
By R.J. Marx
Cannon Beach Gazette
Microplastics are one concern for beach
environments.
“This year there was the greatest dis-
tribution of microplastics I’ve ever seen,”
Maine said, adding that he has seen an
“incredible volume” of plastic debris,
which can be ingested by sea animals.
“These become sponges for chemical
structures in ocean water so we get con-
centrated chemical material in these par-
ticles.”
Maine suggested beach cleanups be
combined with “Beaches are Alive” edu-
cation. Keeping beaches free from trash
is a beneit for both coastal residents and
visitors.
“So many people go to the beach and
walk and ind that solace and atmosphere
that they need,” Maine said. “You can try
to put some of that in the bank, because
June will be here soon.”
‘Fisher poet’ Densmore comes to Cannon Beach
CANNON BEACH GAZETTE/SUBMITTED PHOTO
Dire risk prompts
Wyden stopover
Poet and isherman David Densmore will be reading
poems and stories at the Cannon Beach History Center
& Museum in Cannon Beach on Thursday, May 12, at
7 p.m.
Dave Densmore has appeared in The New York
Times and Smithsonian Magazine, he was one of the
subjects of a documentary called “isher poets,” and
has published several books of his writings. He is well
known as an artist and isherman on the coast of Ore-
gon and in Alaska. He has appeared at events for the
Bioneers: the Columbia River Keepers events, and at
New Bedford’s Working Waterfront Festival. When not
ishing in Alaska or writing in Oregon, he spends his
time in Belize and Guatemala.
The event is free and open to the public, it will be
held at the Cannon Beach History Center & Museum,
1387 S. Spruce St. Coffee and tea will be served.
“Help!” is the message
from Seaside School Super-
intendent Doug Dougherty,
and U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
responded to the SOS Sun-
day, April 24.
Dougherty and Seaside
Mayor Don Larson served
as guides on a tour of the
city’s tsunami zone, from
Seaside High School to
Broadway Middle School
before going east to Sea-
R.J. MARX/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
side Heights Elementary
School.
Seaside School District
“My view is when you Superintendent
Doug
talk about disasters, this Dougherty and U.S. Sen.
has historically been con- Ron Wyden behind Sea-
sidered a place there is a side High School.
federal role,” Wyden said.
“It’s not about somebody’s political philosophy when com-
ing together to ensure when our communities are facing life-
and-death situations we are there for them.”
Dougherty told Wyden that Seaside is the most vulnera-
ble to tsunamis of any city in Oregon. “Seaside, then Gear-
hart, then Cannon Beach,” Dougherty said.
Most of Oregon’s other coastal towns have some kind of
elevation, Dougherty said, providing some protection.
Federal studies only plan for 38-foot tsunami waves, but
studies by the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral
Industries found past tsunamis scaled 80 feet.
“If the federal government doesn’t get the heights right,
that’s going to affect everything else,” Wyden said. “As I un-
derstand it, Doug Dougherty is trying to plan for real world
circumstances, not for some mythical igure.”
Wyden, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Com-
mittee, said he would seek predisaster and Federal Emergen-
cy Management Agency funds.
“What really needs to improve is the judgments of mem-
bers of Congress in terms of priorities, and that’s my job,”
the Oregon Democrat said.
Wyden said he sees raising the issue of tsunami aware-
ness as a national one.
“Seaside would be different than a small community in
the Midwest or something on the East Coast,” Wyden said.
“Disasters are something where Congress comes together
and says, ‘We’ve got to come together in terms of preven-
tative medicine.’”
Wyden said he plans to take Seaside’s message back to
Washington, D.C.
“There’s nothing better than coming out and seeing some-
thing like this,” Wyden said. “Otherwise you’re just reading
government reports and talking about this in the abstract.”
We’ve had “a little work done!”
Come celebrate our big reveal!
We’ll take you where
you need to go.
If you don’t have wheels, don’t worry. Providence Seaside
Hospital offers Providence Community Connections, a free
ride program to get you to your health and wellness services.
This resource is available to people of all ages who have no
other transportation options.
Our volunteer drivers can take you to your medical
appointments, even if you have to go to Portland. We can
also give you a lift to the grocery store, bank, post office,
library or even the gym – whatever you need for your
well-being.
For eligibility details and ride reservations,
call 503-717-7174.
Providence.org/northcoast
You’re invited to our
Grand Re-Opening at
May 9, 2016 from 4-7pm
Please join us to view our face lift
at he Ocean Lodge.
We will have lite bites, wine,
music and rooms to show.
2864 S. Paciic St., PO Box 1037
Cannon Beach, Oregon 97110
888-777-4047 | theoceanlodge.com