Terrestrial land use activities present cross-ecosystem threats to riverine and marine species and processes. Specifically, pesticide runoff can disrupt hormonal, reproductive, and developmental processes in aquatic organisms, yet non-point source pollution is difficult to trace and quantify. In Oregon, U.S.A., state and federal forestry pesticide regulations, designed to meet regulatory water quality requirements, differ in buffer size and pesticide applications. We deployed passive water samplers and collected riverine and estuarine bivalves Margaritifera falcata, Mya arenaria, and Crassostrea gigas from Oregon Coast watersheds to examine forestry-specific pesticide contamination. We used non-metric multidimensional scaling and regression to relate concentrations and types of pesticide contamination across watersheds to ownership and management metrics. In bivalve samples collected from eight coastal watersheds, we measured twelve unique pesticides (two herbicides; three fungicides; and seven insecticides). Pesticides were detected in 38% of bivalve samples; and frequency and maximum concentrations varied by season, species, and watershed with indaziflam (herbicide) the only current-use forestry pesticide detected. Using passive water samplers, we measured four current-use herbicides corresponding with planned herbicide applications; hexazinone and atrazine were most frequently detected. Details about types and levels of exposure provide insight into effectiveness of current forest management practices in controlling transport of forest-use pesticides.

Effective conservation and restoration of estuarine wetlands require accurate maps of their historical and current extent, as well as estimated losses of these valued habitats. Existing coast-wide tidal wetland mapping does not explicitly map historical tidal wetlands that are now disconnected from the tides, which represent restoration opportunities; nor does it use water level models or high-resolution elevation data (e.g. lidar) to accurately identify current tidal wetlands. To better inform estuarine conservation and restoration, we generated new maps of current and historical tidal wetlands for the entire contiguous U.S. West Coast (Washington, Oregon, and California). The new maps are based on an Elevation-Based Estuary Extent Model (EBEEM) that combines lidar digital elevation models (DEMs) and water level models to establish the maximum historical extent of tidal wetlands, representing a major step forward in mapping accuracy for restoration planning and analysis of wetland loss. Building from this new base, we also developed an indirect method for mapping tidal wetland losses, and created maps of these losses for 55 estuaries on the West Coast (representing about 97% of historical West Coast vegetated tidal wetland area). Based on these new maps, we estimated that total historical estuary area for the West Coast is approximately 735,000 hectares (including vegetated and nonvegetated areas), and that about 85% of vegetated tidal wetlands have been lost from West Coast estuaries. Losses were highest for major river deltas. The new maps will help interested groups improve action plans for estuarine wetland habitat restoration and conservation, and will also provide a better baseline for understanding and predicting future changes with projected sea level rise.

The purpose of Oregon's Nearshore Research Inventory (NRI) project was to understand the geographic use of ocean space by the marine science community in order to include the information in Oregon's marine spatial planning (MSP) process. Spatial data and attributes about the geographic use of Oregon's ocean and coast by marine scientists were inventoried and mapped; including information about the geographic distribution of research, research timelines, and the people and institutions that conduct scientific research. The results of the NRI interviews show that the scientific community conducts research in twenty percent of the nearshore grid cells used in the Oregon's Territorial Sea amendment process. These results show that ocean space is used by the scientific community, and therefore, should be recognized as a use of ocean space in the MSP process.As new uses, such as wave energy extraction, are proposed along coastlines and in the ocean, MSP can be used as a tool to reduce conflict and find compatible uses of ocean and coastal space. A major benefit of the scientific community's use of ocean and coastal space is that it results in data that can be used to inform ecosystem-based management decisions. Interruptions in long-term scientific research and monitoring as a result of ocean space use conflicts could limit the availability of information for use in future management decisions. While considering tradeoffs in the MSP process, decision makers need to recognize and account for the value of scientific space as a use of the ocean. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

The purpose of Oregon’s Nearshore Research Inventory (NRI) project was to understand the geographic use of ocean space by the marine science community in order to include the information in Oregon’s marine spatial planning (MSP) process. Spatial data and attributes about the geographic use of Oregon’s ocean and coast by marine scientists were inventoried and mapped; including information about the geographic distribution of research, research timelines, and the people and institutions that conduct scientific research. The results of the NRI interviews show that the scientific community conducts research in twenty percent of the nearshore grid cells used in the Oregon’s Territorial Sea amendment process. These results show that ocean space is used by the scientific community, and therefore, should be recognized as a use of ocean space in the MSP process. As new uses, such as wave energy extraction, are proposed along coastlines and in the ocean, MSP can be used as a tool to reduce conflict and find compatible uses of ocean and coastal space. A major benefit of the scientific community’s use of ocean and coastal space is that it results in data that can be used to inform ecosystem-based management decisions. Interruptions in long-term scientific research and monitoring as a result of ocean space use conflicts could limit the availability of information for use in future management decisions. While considering tradeoffs in the MSP process, decision makers need to recognize and account for the value of scientific space as a use of the ocean. © 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd.