Oregon Ocean Climate Action

Victory! On July 19, 2021 Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed HB 3114, a bill that makes strategic climate investments in Oregon's ocean. Surfrider Chapters in Oregon have been working since the inception of the Nearshore Task Force in 2010 to create a pathway for funding critical ocean science and adaptation issues. Part of that effort, was the founding of Oregon's Ocean Science Trust, which was woefully never invested in by the state. HB 3114 marks the first investment of the State of Oregon in the Trust, providing nearly $2 million to strategically address climate impacts directly affecting Oregon's ocean resources. Learn more on our Oregon page here.

This year Surfrider Foundation Chapters in Oregon are working once again to advance HB 3114, a bill that will make strategic investments in Oregon's Ocean Science Trust for the science, adaptation and mitagion of ocean acidification and hypoxia - problematic issues for Oregon's ocean resources that are directly linked to excess carbon in the atmosphere. Surfrider Foundation has been working for eight years in Oregon to support the Oregon Ocean Science Trust with dedicated funding from the Oregon legislature. Established in 2013, the Trust was developed to support important ocean conservation science, policies and management on issues ranging from ocean acidification and hypoxia to evaluating habitat protection efforts such as marine reserves and protected areas. Unfortunately, despite countless efforts in the legislature, continued partisan politics and revenue challenges in Oregon's legislature have curtailed funding the Trust with any state dollars since it's establishment. Learn more below under our previous legislative campaign why we need climate action now in Oregon's ocean and check out this short video if you need a primer on ocean acidification and solutions!

Previous Legislative Campaign (2020)

Surfrider Chapters in Oregon are working to advance SB 1554, which primarily invests in the science, adaptation and mitigation of ocean acidification and hypoxia –problematic issues for Oregon’s ocean resources that are directly linked to excess carbon in the atmosphere. The bill goes a bit further to support the furtherance of the Oregon Ocean Science Trust, a fund established by the Legislature in 2013 that has woefully never received a penny from Oregon but is paramount for funding and evaluating important ocean conservation efforts. A final key piece of the legislation for Oregon Surfrider chapters is funding the evaluation of Oregon’s Marine Reserve Program, important protected areas in Oregon’s ocean that may unlock a further understanding of climate change resiliency in nearshore ocean habitats. While Oregon’s legislature has become partisan squabbling over who should pay for carbon caps, where to invest, and what industries are most responsible for climate change, coastal legislators and local communities are seeing the direct impacts of excess carbon in the Ocean – there’s no doubt or divisiveness in that. Read More.