Ocean Policy Notices and Events

You are receiving this notice as a subscriber to the Department of Land Conservation and Development email notification lists. The content for this distribution is provided by the Oregon Coastal Management Program.

Distribution Topics: 

1. BOEM Task Force Meeting Reminder, May 23, 2024

2. Notice: Reestablishing PacWave North, May 29, 2024  

3. DLCD Hosting Coastal Community Meetings on Proposed Offshore Wind Leases

Reminder: Virtual BOEM Oregon Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force Meeting

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) invites you to the upcoming BOEM Oregon Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force meeting on May 23, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (PT). The meeting will be held virtually over Zoom and advanced registration is required. Click here to register for the meeting.

The purpose of the meeting is to update Task Force members on activities relevant to Oregon offshore wind energy planning activities since the September 2023 Task Force meeting and to outline and discuss potential next steps in the offshore wind energy leasing process.

The public is encouraged to attend this meeting, which will include an opportunity for public input on topics identified on the meeting agenda.  

Additional meeting information, including an agenda, is available on BOEM's Oregon activities page.  

The BOEM Oregon Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force reflects a partnership between Tribal Nations, federal, state, and local agencies to facilitate coordination of offshore renewable energy planning activities in federal waters. The task force serves as a forum to discuss issues and concerns; exchange data and information about ocean resources and uses; and facilitate early and continual dialogue and collaboration opportunities.

-- BOEM --

Meeting Notice:

OSU Reestablishing PacWave North

May 29, 2024

6:00 p.m.

Meeting will be held via Zoom only

Join Zoom Meeting:              https://oregonstate.zoom.us/s/96134054051 

Call in information: 

Phone numbers for call-in:     US : +1 971 247 1195 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 301 715 8592

Meeting ID:                             961 3405 4051

Passcode:                               231989

Find your local number:          https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kZJJxDMzH

Oregon State University (OSU) is proposing to reestablish the PacWave North wave energy test site this summer with the deployment of the Ocean Sentinel test buoy. OSU is pursuing a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nationwide permit and has a long-term lease (15 years) with the Oregon Department of State Lands (DSL). The Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) is in the process of finalizing its Federal Consistency Determination and has requested OSU host a public meeting with the Newport fishing community per the Territorial Sea Plan Part 5, Section D:

“Applicants shall communicate with traditional ocean users and stakeholders with an interest in the area of the proposed project to address issues of concern. Applicants are encouraged to memorialize agreements with those ocean users and stakeholders on specific actions, including conducting the adaptive management and monitoring plan, that the applicant is required to perform.”

OSU is proposing to deploy the Ocean Sentinel and various monitoring instruments at PacWave North. In-water work will consist of the deployment and recovery of buoys, anchors and mooring systems. OSU is proposing to have the option of keeping the Ocean Sentinel deployed over the winter months and has committed to using a similar process to detect and potentially return entangled fishing gear as prescribed in the existing agreement with Lincoln County for PacWave South.

Click here for the event flyer.

If you have specific questions about the planned deployment, please contact Brett Hembrough (brett.hembrough@oregonstate.edu).

If you have questions about the meeting itself, please contact Anna Herring (anna.herring@oregonstate.edu).

DLCD Hosting Coastal Community Meetings on Proposed Offshore Wind Leases

The Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) will be hosting a series of community meetings along the Oregon coast related to a proposal by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to lease areas of the ocean off Oregon’s coast to explore possibilities for wind energy development. DLCD has the opportunity to review BOEM's proposed leasing activities under the federal consistency provisions of the Coastal Zone Managmenet Act. In the review process, we consider feedback from community members. 

The community meetings will be an opportunity to provide comments in person which will be recorded by staff. The meeting program is as follows:

• Open House 5:30 p.m.
• Presentations 6:00 p.m.
• Public Comment 6:30 p.m.
• Next Steps and Adjourn 8:00 p.m.

The proposed BOEM leases would authorize companies to study the areas off Oregon’s coast for potential offshore wind energy development projects. After leases are granted, companies would perform activities in the ocean that may include placement of scientific buoys and collection of data about seafloor conditions, ocean habitats, and wildlife.

More information on the proposed leasing actions and the state's federal consistency review process can be found on the DLCD website. 

BOEM’s proposed leasing action is not a proposal to permit the construction of an offshore wind project. A BOEM decision whether to approve a Construction and Operations Plan for a wind energy facility would be subject to a separate federal consistency review by the state, after some years of additional site assessment and project design.

During the community meetings, OCMP staff will provide information about the proposed activities that are being reviewed and the applicable state policies and authorities related to a consistency review. Community members can provide comments on the consistency review during the 45-day comment period, which ends on June 15, 2024.

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