New biological control for knotweed introduced in the UK. A Japanese insect is joining the fight against the malacious invader. This is big news for the Oregon coast. Knotweed has spread throughout many riparian areas. Hopefully this control will be safe and effective. It would be nice to find a solution (or stop gap). Here are a couple of images I yanked from the BBC.
Hi Friends,
Its time again for the annual SOLV beach clean-up! Come join thousands
of volunteers across Oregon this Saturday from 10am to 2pm as we clear
the coast of debris. In the Coos area there are two sites where you can
get involved in this great event: Horsfall Beach and Bastendorff Beach.
All the necessary equipment will be provided by SOLV.
For more information or to pre-register go to www.solv.org
What: Spring Beach Clean-up!
When: This Saturday March 20, 2010 (10am-2pm)
Where: Horsfall Beach or Bastendorff Beach
Who: Everyone!
I look forward to seeing you at the beach!
Meredith Pochardt
Watershed Outreach Organizer (AmeriCorps)
Coos Watershed Association
PO Box 5860
Charleston, OR 97420
Phone: 541-888-5922
· Providing USGS scientists opportunities to hear from the Department of the Interior, the USGS Office of Global Change, other DOI agencies, and national and international organizations about their program goals, strategic directions, and science needs
· Showcasing current USGS Global Change science and coordinating future USGS research plans within the national and international context
· Implementing the USGS Science Strategy through the USGS Science Planning Process
Focus Areas:
1. Paleo-reconstructions of climate change and ecological responses
2. Global change effects on ecosystems and linkages among water, soils, biota, and land use
3. Incorporating global change science into resource management decisions
4. Modeling and projection of resource response to global change
5. Results or status of projects funded through the Request for Proposals (RFP) process
Please contact the committee at globalchangeconf@usgs.gov for assistance.
March 2- 4 - 2010 WA-BC Chapter AFS Annual General Meeting (Vancouver Island Conference Center, Nanaimo, BC)
http://www.wabc-afs.org/agm2010/
Meeting Theme:
“New research and applied science to meet fishery management needs”
We are privileged this year to co-convene with the Pink and Chum Salmon Workshop
We will have invited Speakers; Symposia, and Contributed Sessions on regional or local marine, estuarine, and freshwater topics; and Several educational exhibitors! Please check out our Program page for the latest update.
March 10 - 13 - 28th Annual Salmonid Restoration Federation and 44th Annual AFS Cal-Neva Conference (Redding Convention Center, Redding, CA)
www.calsalmon.org
Salmonid Restoration Federation and the California-Nevada American Fisheries Society chapter will co-host the 28th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference and the 44th Annual Cal-Neva AFS Conference in Redding, California. We are truly excited about this new collaborative effort. The theme of the conference is Fisheries Restoration and Science in a Changing Climate. The first two days of the conference will be filled with symposia, full-day workshops continuing education classes, and field tours. A half-day plenary session will be followed by 1.5 days of technical, biological, and policy-related concurrent sessions. This conference will focus on a broad range of salmonid, fisheries, and watershed restoration topics of concern to restoration practitioners, and the scientific fisheries community.
For more information about the conference, to see the agenda, or to register, please visit www.calsalmon.org
April 13 - Washington Forest Practices Adaptive Management Annual Science Conference (Washington State Capital Campus, Olympia, WA)
The Cooperative Monitoring, Evaluation and Research Committee (CMER) announce the sixth annual Forest Practices Adaptive Management Science Conference on Tuesday, April 13th, in Olympia, Washington. CMER is responsible for conducting research and monitoring in support of adaptive management of the Forest Practices Rules, which governs forestry practices on private and state forestlands in Washington State.
The one day conference will highlight CMER studies including:
· Riparian Research and Monitoring on Fish- and Non Fish-Bearing Streams
· Amphibian Research and Monitoring
· Upland Research and Monitoring on Roads and Unstable Slopes
An agenda for the conference will be distributed in February 2010. There is no fee for the conference, however reservations are required.
To register, please send an e-mail including your name, affiliation, and e-mail address to Dawn Hitchens at dawn.hitchens@dnr.wa.gov .
The conference will be held on the Washington State Capitol Campus at the DSHS Office Building 2 Auditorium in Olympia. For driving directions to DSHS OB2 visit:
http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/geninfo/drivingdirections.shtml
For more information on CMER, please visit the web site:
http://www.dnr.wa.gov/BusinessPermits/Topics/FPAdaptiveManagementProgram/Pages/fp_am_program.aspx
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Jacque Schei
5501A Cook-Underwood Road
Cook, WA 98605
A post hearing update:
The Columbia River Act was introduced along with reauthorization/authorizations for four other great water bodies. the Columbia River Restoration Act bill number is HB4652. No Senate number yet.
Senator Merkley gave excellent testimony to the needs of the entire Columbia River Basin. He was very complimentary of the Estuary Partnership and the work we have done. And he made noted that the Columbia continues to be the only great water body to receive no funding pursuant as a great water body.
Peter Silva, EPA Assistant Administrator for Water, testified for the five water bodies. Mr. Silva described the EPA large aquatic ecosystem program (aka great water bodies) in his testimony and he discussed their goals for the Columbia. In his concluding remarks, he expressed concern about not wanting to duplicate NEP and LAE efforts. You can hear or read all testimony at www.epa.senate.gov.
Senator Merkley’s staff felt the hearing went very well.
Following the I hearing, I met with staff from our delegation and I had the opportunity to personally thank Congressman Blumenauer and Congressman Baird for their sponsorship. Like all legislation, this will go through changes; we’re working on a few already with the Congressional offices. (I’ll work with EPA headquarters and Region 10 on the NEP/LAE issue. With the Columbia, the NEP is a very small subset of the basin, the duplication issue wouldn’t be the same as say Puget and Long Island Sound whose geographies for both the NEP and LAE are nearly the same.) We don’t know yet if there will be a hearing in the House and what the schedule is from here.
I think the Estuary Partnership has taken a great approach: we took our time to demonstrate our capabilities, support local efforts and fill gaps, and show results with the investment that was being made in us as a National Estuary Program before we asked for more money. And of course we are far from there! The Estuary Partnership will continue to work to ensure that the bill addresses our primary goal: get funding to expand our ability to implement the Management Plan, especially monitoring and toxic reduction actions.
All of the Delegation have been incredibly dedicated to this. Congressman Blumenauer’s DC and district staff and Senator Merkley’s DC have taken the lead on this --- and all the staff with Senators Wyden, Murray and Cantwell, Congressmen Baird, Wu, even Congressmen DeFazio and Walden who only have a small piece of our study area is in their districts, have been right there with us.
The hearing room and the event was impressive; it reminded me how important it is to see the processes of our government and understand its history. I wish every school kid could witness this at least once especially at our State level. Our Congressional members and State members have been so accessible to us.
Please let me know if you have questions, concerns or any thoughts about this,
Debrah
Executive Director
Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership
811 SW Naito Parkway, Suite 410
Portland, Oregon 97204
We have very exciting news! The Columbia River Recovery Act will be introduced in U.S. Congress today. Senator Merkley from Oregon will introduce it in the Senate and Congressmen Blumenauer, Wu, and Baird will introduce it in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The Estuary Partnership has been working for years to raise awareness for the Columbia River with Congress. We worked since 1995 to raise the stature of the estuary and in recent years extended our support for the entire Columbia River Basin. We appreciate EPA Region 10 elevation in 2006-2007 of the Columbia River Basin to one of its national priorities and the efforts of the Toxics Reduction Workgroup. As a reflection of the Estuary Partnership’s long term commitment and involvement with this work in Congress, Debrah was invited to testify in the Senate this week on behalf of the Columbia River Basin and the lower Columbia River Estuary.
We are delighted by the momentum this work has received from our entire Congressional delegation. We will keep you posted as things move along.
Sincerely,
Maggie Codding Jones
Development and Communications Specialist
Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership
811 SW Naito Parkway, Suite 410
Portland, OR 97204
Bees are in peril, bats are in peril, predators are in... well you get the picture. The question at the end of the article asks what is causing this. For bees there are multiple factors, as the article synthesizes. When you look at one problem, plummeting bee or bat or bird populations for instance, it seems like a problem that can be fixed. All problems viewed in symphony however seems a much more daunting task to surmount. Are we in peril as well? I don't normally give in to fears of doom but, DOOM!!! Just a little humor, if you don't laugh about it you can only cry.
"Interestingly, some beekeepers who normally avoid problems by protecting their bees during the hardest part of the winter in huge potato warehouses are having problems. The weather, too, was against the bees this year. Deadly cold temperatures were harder than normal on the bees that had been loaded on trucks moving west, causing significant losses for some. Down south, where bees are normally soaking up the sun and honey from Florida's balmy days, winter seeped south and kept those bees from doing much of anything except staying home and keeping warm. So instead of building nicely, they stubbornly, simply stayed warm. They didn't grow, expand into colonies the size almond groves need. So they're out of the equation.
So prices are officially crazy. Three weeks ago if you asked $150 rent for colony you'd be laughed right out of the almond orchard. Today, $200 isn't an uncommon offer, and the line goes out to the parking lot for growers wanting to pay that amount. What's causing this?"
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife News Release
February 4, 2010
Contacts:
Andrea Hanson, ODFW Strategy Species coordinator, (503) 947-6320
Meg Kenagy, ODFW Conservation Strategy Communications coordinator, (503) 947-6021
Wildlife Managers Say New Disease Could Affect NW Bat Populations
Salem, Ore.—The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife asks Oregonians, especially those who work in or enjoy exploring caves or mines, to take action to limit the spread of white-nose syndrome, a new disease that has killed over one million bats in the northeast.
White-nose syndrome is caused by a cold-environment fungus that thrives in the same temperature range as hibernating bats do. Once infected, bats demonstrate a tell-tale white fuzzy growth on their noses. The direct cause of death is still unclear, although it is believed the fungus interrupts sleep patterns and causes the hibernating bats to awaken during winter and burn calories they can’t afford to use, depleting their fat reserves and causing starvation.
Although white-nose syndrome has not yet arrived in Oregon, precautions need to be taken now to ensure the health of our native bats, which play important roles in the environment. For example, one bat can eat up to 600 insects in an hour, benefiting farmers, foresters and homeowners.
First, never disturb a bat colony. Bats are highly sensitive to disturbance when they gather together in summer to give birth and in winter to hibernate. Second, avoid going into mines or caves unless necessary. If you do enter a cave, decontaminate your clothing and equipment to avoid transmitting any potential disease. Decontamination is particularly critical if you have been in caves in the eastern United States. Third, notify your local ODFW office if you observe several dead bats in the same location. Do not pick up or handle bats, alive or dead.
“We need to monitor the health of our bat populations. A number of our native species are already vulnerable,” said Andrea Hanson, ODFW Strategy Species coordinator. “In the past, reports of unusual bat deaths have come from the public, which is why we are asking for help from Oregonians.”
There are 15 species of bats in Oregon. Many of them are identified in the Oregon Conservation Strategy as species in need of help. Learn more about them in the Conservation Summaries of Strategy Species section of the Strategy.
More information
If you have been in a cave, follow the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s recommended decontamination procedure which is detailed on their Northeast Region Web site, http://www.fws.gov/northeast/wnscavers.html
Report unusual bat death situations to Andrea Hanson, ODFW Strategy Species coordinator, (503) 947-6320, or Colin Gillin, State Wildlife veterinarian, (541) 757-4186.
Living with Bats, a flyer about bats in Oregon, is available on the ODFW Web site (pdf).
The Bat Conservation International Web site, has additional information on white-nose syndrome.
Photo
Fringed bat flying in the high desert of Central Oregon. Photo Michael Durham.
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In 2006, the service argued that jaguars were primarily native to South and Central America and that their range in the United States was largely incidental to its survival.
Wildlife advocates sued to protest those findings, pointing out that jaguars were thought to have once ranged from Louisiana to California, although they had rarely been seen in recent decades.
Last March, the Federal District Court in Tucson told the government that it would have to come back with a decision that was soundly based in science.
In theory, the service could have sought again to rule out habitat conservation. But this time the government said it would move to protect critical habitat and would publish a description of the land proposed for the designation.
It also agreed to develop a formal recovery plan, which will envision how the jaguar might make a recovery.
The Fish and Wildlife Service says there are no known jaguars in the United States today. The last jaguar known to exist within the nation’s borders died last March.
However, there are nearly 5,000 in Mexico, and more ranging as far south as Argentina and Paraguay.
The notion behind a critical habitat designation is to enable the jaguar to survive if it ranges north again."
Check out the entire article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/13/science/earth/13jaguar.html?ref=science
