State Rep. Wayne Krieger, R-Gold Beach, motions at an Ocean Policy Advisory Council meeting in Gold Beach on Nov. 30. Krieger is a member of the committee that will consider marine reserves legislation. - World Photo by Susan Chambers

COOS BAY — Coastal legislators have no reservations about preparing marine reserves legislation in advance of the Feb. 4 supplemental session.

Rep. Deborah Boone, D-Seaside, has put together a Legislative Concept — roughly the same thing as draft legislation — of a marine reserves bill to be considered by members of the Emergency Preparedness and Ocean Policy committee.

The committee, which includes coastal members Boone, the chairwoman; Vice-Chairwoman Jean Cowan, D-Newport; and Wayne Krieger, R-Gold Beach; will hold a public hearing and work session at 10 a.m. on Monday, to listen to testimony about it. The other members of the committee are Vice-Chairwoman Donna Nelson, R-McMinnville; and Mike Schaufler, D-Happy Valley.

Legislative Concept 89 provides that marine reserves and marine protected areas may be established only by amendment to the Oregon Ocean Resources Management Plan.

It’s designed more as “placeholder” legislation — a draft of a bill that ensures the issue will be considered by the legislature at a later date.

“We know there’s going to be amendments, additions,” Krieger said from Gold Beach on Friday.

The bill comes at a time when the Ocean Policy Advisory Council is working through details of policy documents and public outreach sessions about marine reserves. The council recently approved Oregon Sea Grant work on public outreach to coastal communities and to hold at least one meeting in the Willamette Valley.

The marine reserves issue has long been controversial, with many ocean users opposed to closing off areas of the ocean to activity and supporters hoping to use marine reserves as a way to preserve biodiversity in the ocean environment.

But those black-and-white attitudes may be changing, Krieger said.

Krieger recently returned from an Oregon Coastal Zone Management Association in Brookings on Friday. Participants there were more open to the considering the idea of marine reserves.

“People expressed their concerns,” Krieger said. “They’re getting better at not just saying ‘no,’ or ‘absolutely yes.’”

Evidence of the greater discussion includes recent meetings with Gov. Ted Kulongoski, who met with members of the fishing industry on Nov. 1 and promised to establish no more than 10 reserves; and the meeting between Sen. Joanne Verger, D-Coos Bay and Rep. Arnie Roblan, D-Coos Bay, with the governor, at which time he reappointed Coos County Commissioner John Griffith to the Ocean Council.

Legislatively, the draft bill incorporates most of what Kulongoski promised the fishermen in November with regard to the number of reserves. It also says they will be small enough to avoid economic or social impacts to coastal communities but large enough to provide for scientific study and monitoring.

It also ensures that if marine reserves or marine protected areas are incorporated into the Oregon Ocean Resources Management Plan, that the council will do “an economic analysis of short-term and long-term effects that the establishment of such areas would have on coastal communities.”

But all that could change.

“Realistically, these things don’t happen overnight,” OPAC Chairman Scott McMullen said. “I think there’s going to be plenty of time to look at it.”

And the issue isn’t going away. Marine reserves have the attention of state lawmakers and more coastal groups are on board with their own versions of public outreach. Several meetings will be held soon regarding both marine reserves and wave energy (see sidebar). Discussions will continue.

“You can’t base the need on any science; that doesn’t work,” Krieger said, noting the difficulty with current lack of data about the diversity of Oregon’s ocean environment and how marine reserves could change it. “But for research purposes and monitoring, we might be able to learn something that will help the environment.”