Partner Updates
 Marine debris mural created by students from Seaside and Garibaln (Photo Credit: Oregon Shores).
From Coastline to Classroom
Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition and marine debris artist Elizabeth Roberts teamed up once again for their 3rd year of bringing Art & Ecology to Oregon Schools. Using marine debris collected during winter clean up efforts, approximately 750 students from two north coast schools participated in three workshop stations: the marine debris game, snowy plover writer’s workshop, and a collaborative marine debris mural and solutions station. This year’s Art & Ecology Workshop also involved 30 school program facilitators and volunteers, 86 cleanup volunteers, and 80 attendees at the Trash Bash Art Show, hosted by Heart of Cartm, where the finished mural was revealed. A total of 816 people had direct involvement in marine debris clean up, awareness raising, and reimagining of waste.
 Claire Martin helping keep Otter Rock clean and beautiful (Photo Credit: Natalie Whitaker).
It Takes a Village to Keep a Beach Clean
Otter Rock Marine Reserve is a beautiful tidepool spot teeming with life and excitement. Beach trash, floating in from the ocean or dismissively left, clogs up many unique Oregon Coast spots. In the June Marine Debris Survey, we found very little trash, and some sectors had no trash at all. At first I was shocked, Otter Rock is not magically shielded from the millions of tons of garbage floating in our oceans. But as I looked closer, I saw the actions of everyday heroes. I saw the locals armed with trash bags and grabbers. I saw out-of-town visitors asking where the garbage was. I saw big groups and families cleaning up after themselves. These actions, no matter how big or small, are what keep Otter Rock beautiful and healthy.
 An Oregon Parks and Recreation Department beach ranger truck bed full of firework debris on July 5th, 2025 (Photo credit: Nehalem Bay State Park Staff).
Afterglow Cleanup
Each year, visitors flock to Oregon’s beaches during the July 4th holiday to light off fireworks amongst family and friends. Despite Oregon’s ban on fireworks on the ocean shore, it’s still an ongoing challenge to transform lifelong visitor behavior through outreach, education and enforcement.
While not the only strategy implemented, retroactive clean ups targeting firework debris can be an effective community approach to mitigate marine debris. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) partners with SOLVE on three coastwide events each year, including the “afterglow” cleanup on July 5th, to promote the value of clean Oregon beaches. SOLVE reported almost 13,000 pounds of trash removed from Oregon’s beach this year alone, with 1,300 pounds collected on July 5th.
ORPD will partner with SOLVE on one more large-scale cleanup in 2025. See the SOLVE website for registration information.
 (Photo Credit: Courtney Klug).
Your Community, Your Coast
The Oregon Coast Aquarium is introducing a new way to get connected with the Oregon Coast! Our Conservation Engagement Manager, Shelby, has introduced four programs that are now being offered to groups of all ages. Over the past year, she has taken seven groups out to complete MDMAP programs at South Beach State Park and expanded the aquarium’s involvement in the program by adopting a second location at Roads End State Park. She is also offering Beach Clean-ups, Nurdle Patrol, Coast Watch, and Ocean Diagnostic programming. If you’re interested in learning more about our programs, please visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium website.
 (Photo Credit: SOLVE).
Host a Cleanup for the Beach & Riverside Cleanup September 20–28
Help protect the places you love by hosting a cleanup during SOLVE’s Beach & Riverside Cleanup, taking place September 20–28. This region-wide effort removes litter and debris from coastlines, rivers, creeks, and parks before fall rains can carry pollution into our waterways and ocean. The week of action spans three major environmental days: International Coastal Cleanup Day (September 20), National Public Lands Day (September 27), and World Rivers Day (September 28). SOLVE is calling on local leaders to host projects in their favorite outdoor spaces—whether it’s a city park, coastal trail, riverside path, or neighborhood greenway. SOLVE provides support, resources, and promotion to help new and returning volunteers lead successful events.
 (Photo Credit: Sarah Wolf, CKC Media).
New Documentary Highlights Community Solutions to Aquaculture Marine Debris
A new 8-minute documentary showcases innovative, community-driven efforts to address aquaculture marine debris in Yaquina Bay. Produced by Oregon Sea Grant Natural Resource Policy Fellow Dr. Sarah Wolf in partnership with the Surfrider Foundation, the project brings together oyster farmers, volunteers, and scientists to remove legacy debris and pilot sustainable alternatives to reduce plastic pollution. This story highlights how local leadership and cross-sector collaboration can reduce marine debris and build coastal resilience. View the documentary here.
 NOAA Marine Debris Program Updates
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The BoatUS Foundation Announces 10 New Projects Under the Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program
We are pleased to announce, in partnership with the BoatUS Foundation, 10 new marine debris removal projects under the Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program. These projects represent an investment of nearly $7.4 million for removal of abandoned and derelict vessels with funds provided by the NOAA Marine Debris Program. The projects will remove derelict vessels in Alaska, Guam, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, Washington, and U.S. Virgin Islands.
In Oregon, the Oregon Department of State Lands will remove 43 boats that are no longer used or maintained from public ports along the Oregon coast.
Learn more about these projects.
Photo: An abandoned derelict vessel at imminent risk of sinking at the Port of Newport, Oregon, will be removed under a groundbreaking removal program (Photo Credit: Dorothy Diehl, Oregon Dept. of State Lands).
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