Tag Archives: Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden
Oregon congressional members ask feds for more comment time on offshore wind energy sites
Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle, all Democrats, said residents need more time according to input they’ve received. In a letter on Tuesday, they asked the agency’s director, Elizabeth Klein, to extend the comment period to give Oregonians who would be affected by the offshore sites a chance to fully engage in the process. “Tribes, the fishing community and others throughout Oregon’s coastal communities are currently working to develop comments that will 
inform the environmental assessment for the wind energy areas, including impacts to the ocean ecosystem, environment, fisheries, viewsheds and other important resources,” they said. The sites are part of the Biden administration’s plan to build up 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind energy capacity by 2035, with a total of 30 gigawatts deployed by 2030. more, >>click to read<< 12:01
Kotek calls for pause on offshore wind turbines
Gov. Tina Kotek is joining a chorus of voices, including tribes and commercial fishermen, urging the Biden administration to slow down its push for floating wind farms in the Pacific Ocean off the state’s southern coast. Regulators are now preparing a draft report outlining where in the areas turbines may be built safely while minimizing harm to fisheries and marine life. Members of the West Coast fishing industry, however, claim that the bureau is ignoring their concerns. They worry that floating offshore wind farms will displace boats from highly productive fishing grounds and could irreversibly damage the California Current ecosystem. >click to read< 09:20
Oregon and California Senators seek fishery disaster declaration
Oregon’s and California’s senators called for a federal salmon fishery disaster declaration for both states to support economic recovery for coastal communities, in a letter Friday to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. The letter from Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and California Sens. Kamala Harris and Dianne Feinstein follows a request from Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and California Gov. Jerry Brown for the federal government to issue a fisheries disaster declaration to provide economic relief for the loss of coastal jobs due to declining salmon populations. Click here to read the story 17:00
Hold on Rear Admiral’s Promotion as South Carolina and Oregon Lawmakers Urge Coast Guard to Reverse Course on Helicopters
The effort to keep a Coast Guard search and rescue helicopter on the central coast is picking up steam, with the chair of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation adding his support and Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden putting the brakes on one admiral’s promotion. Read the rest here 22:29
