Oregon Beach News, Monday 5/16 – OSU Expert Talks On Offshore Wind Farming To Be Done Responsibly. Clatsop County, Lincoln City, and Tillamook County will each get $500,000 To Clear Contaminated Sites

The latest news stories across the state of Oregon from the digital home of the Oregon coastal cities, OregonBeachMagazine.com

Monday, May 16, 2022

Oregon Beach Weather

OSU Expert Talks On Offshore Wind Farming To Be Done Responsibly

Flaxen Conway, director of the Marine Resource Management Graduate Program at Oregon State University gave an OSU talk on 5/9 titled, “Perspectives and Complexities of Responsible Offshore Wind Development in Oregon,” she addressed questions around offshore wind farming.

She works with coastal communities to develop strategies to cope with change. She’s now presenting ideas in the community on how offshore wind energy can be done responsibly.

Conway says it’s important to figure out what fits the area when choosing climate resilient power systems while aiming to avoid negative impacts as much as possible.

And while BOEM suggests offshore wind development will yield 80,000 jobs across the country, Conway says more specifics around those jobs are needed to assess the real tradeoff.

There’s also concern for people and animals that share the space, a space that will be drastically reduced once portions are privatized and are no longer accessible.

This privatization she says impacts stakeholders like fisheries, shipping companies, tribal nations, and scientists who study the call areas.

Coos Bay’s call area she says is roughly the size of Coos County itself while Brookings is about three times the size of Portland.

BOEM wants 30 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 and 110 GW by 2050. And while BOEM believes effects will be minimal or moderate with this development, Conway says there’s a high degree of uncertainty on impacts to the larger marine ecosystem.

Oregon’s gigawatt capacity with the current call areas is 16 GW but the target is 3 GW during the early stages.

Conway urges effective two-way engagement as the process unfolds and says she’ll continue to learn and research.

Eight Oregon communities will share in $4.4 million from the federal Environmental Protection Agency to clean up contaminated buildings and industrial sites. 

Clatsop County, Lincoln City, and Tillamook County will each get $500,000 To Address Contaminated Sites

The money comes from the EPA’s  Brownfields Program. These are sites across the country where communities haven’t been able to expand or create development projects because of contamination such as asbestos, lead and hazardous waste.

EPA estimates there are more than 450,000 such sites in the U.S. There are 474 current and former brownfield sites in Oregon, according to the state Department of Environmental Quality. 

Most of Oregon’s recipients will use the money to survey and study their contaminated sites. Clatsop County, Hillsboro, Lincoln City, Portland, Rogue Valley Council of Governments and Tillamook County will each get $500,000. 

The city of Chiloquin will get $500,000 to clean up a vacant 1929 Markwardt Brothers automotive garage so it can be used for another purpose. Though it also served as a second-hand store in the 1960s and a wood products store in the 1980s, it suffers from contamination left over from its days as a garage, when there weren’t many regulations around the storage and disposal of oil and auto chemicals, according to the city’s grant application. 

At least $1.5 million of the money coming to Oregon’s brownfield sites comes from the Infrastructure and Investment act passed by Congress in November, which included $1.5 billion to “advance environmental justice, spur economic revitalization, and create jobs by cleaning up contaminated, polluted, or hazardous Brownfield properties,” according to EPA. More than 80% of that funding will go to historically underserved areas.

Counterfeit at-home COVID-19 tests are circulating throughout the United States. Counterfeit tests are not authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and may not function properly.At this time, the FDA has identified two counterfeit tests that are made to look a lot like Flowflex COVID-19 Test Kits and iHealth Antigen Rapid Test Kits. (iHealth tests distributed by Oregon Health Authority are NOT counterfeit.)

For examples of counterfeit at-home COVID-19 tests, what to do if you have one and other testing resources, visit http://ow.ly/cZtL50J82sf.Before using an at-home COVID-19 test, make sure it’s on the FDA’s list of authorized at-home tests: http://ow.ly/l1W950J82sgYou can also order free COVID-19 tests directly from the federal government which are not counterfeit: http://ow.ly/n64n50J82se

U.S. Marshals Capture Oregon Escaped Prisoner in Nevada

U.S. Marshals say a 38-year-old fugitive that escaped from a Federal Prison camp in Sheridan at the end of April was captured Friday, May 13 in Nevada.

Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong states that Andrew Cain Kristovich was staying in a tent on a property, that ironically was only a 100 yards from a prison. Kristovich was armed with an AR and five magazines, but he surrendered when he saw his tent surrounded by deputies.

After escaping the FCI Prison Camp in Sheridan on April 25, Kristovich traveled to an ex-girlfriend’s house in Clark County, WA, where he allegedly assaulted and raped her. He then fled with her debit card, cell phone and car. Kristovich told deputies in Carson City he had driven to Nevada in a stolen car, but authorities have not located it.
Originally, Kristovich was arrested in 2018 for manufacturing ghost AK-47s for a Mexican drug cartel. He was sent to the minimum security prison he escaped from, because it was his first offense.

Important Election Information

• May 17, 2022 – County Clerk’s office open 7 am – 8 pm. Official dropsites open until 8 pm, for minimum of 8 hours. (Primary Election)
• May 17, 2022 – Last day to file write-in declaration or write-in nomination for precinct committeeperson. Must be filed no later than 8 pm. (Primary Election)
• May 17, 2022 – Last day for voter to return ballot. Ballots that are mailed must be postmarked by election day. Ballots deposited in an official drop box must be received by 8 pm on election day. (May Election)

MORE INFO: https://sos.oregon.gov/elections/Pages/election-information.aspx

10-Year-Old Girl Struck and Killed By Motorist In Klamath Falls

A 10-year-old girl was struck and killed by a motorist on Friday afternoon in the city of Klamath Falls. Just after 4pm, emergency personnel responded to the area of North 3rd and McKinley street, where a vehicle had struck a pedestrian.

Upon arrival of medical teams, it was determined the victim was not breathing and CPR was administered. She
was then transported to Sky Lakes Medical Center. Unfortunately, after intensive efforts by emergency room personnel, the victim was pronounced deceased.

The driver of the vehicle in the crash remained on scene and was fully cooperating with authorities in their investigation of the incident. Anyone with information or those that may have witnessed the crash are asked to call the Klamath Falls Police department at 541-883-The victim’s name is Katie Fridenfelt. She was a student at Conger Elementary.

Governor Declares Drought In Douglas County Adding It To 15 Of Oregon’s 36 Counties On Drought List

Governor Brown declared a drought in Douglas County on Friday. Now 15 of the state’s 36 counties are subject to active drought declarations.

Brown included Douglas in a drought declaration Friday along with Baker and Wallowa counties in northeastern Oregon and Wheeler County.

“Drought, severe weather conditions, and the upcoming fire season pose significant threats to the local economy, agriculture and livestock, natural resources, and recreation in Baker, Douglas, Wallowa, and Wheeler Counties,” according to the governor’s office. “Governor Brown’s drought declaration unlocks a number of drought-related emergency tools for water users, including assistance to local water users. Drought declarations also allow the Water Resources Department to expedite review processes and reduce fee schedules. Declarations are intended to be short-term emergency authorizations to address water supply challenges.”

MORE INFO: Oregon Water Resources Department Public Declaration Status Report

First Meeting Of The Task Force On Cannabis-Derived Intoxicants And Illegal Cannabis Production in Oregon

Officials from all over the state came together Thursday for the very first meeting of the Task Force on Cannabis-Derived Intoxicants and Illegal Cannabis Production. The goal of the task force is to improve Oregon’s cannabis and hemp markets while keeping the public and environment safe and illegal growers held accountable. The meeting took place over Microsoft Teams.

During the meeting, the Oregon State Police, local cannabis and hemp growers, agriculture scientists, state representatives and more voiced their concerns about illegal marijuana operations in Oregon. Representative Pam
Marsh was elected Chair and Representative Lily Morgan was elected Co-Chair.

Illegal marijuana is a significant problem in southern Oregon, according to police. Sergeant Tyler Bechtel with OSP shared his concerns during Thursday’s task force meeting.  “There is a massive problem in southern Oregon,” Bechtel said.

Other issues discussed during the meeting included labor trafficking, water, and environmental impacts, cross pollinization, and protecting legal growers and operations. 

Klamath County Sheriff’s Office Asks for Public’s Help in Search For Trucker Suspect

The first real clue to come in on all the missing person cases in the area. Help Klamath Falls Oregon Sheriff Office ID this trucker. He was the last to see this woman alive and could be the key to not only solving this woman’s disappearance but a number of the hundred other women missing in PNW. IF you have any information, please call (541) 883-5130

https://www.facebook.com/pg/Have-You-Seen-Me-Southern-Oregons-Missing-People-161249961222839/posts/