Editor鈥檚 note: This story is the first in a two-part series looking at the challenges of erosion and development on the Oregon coast. Tomorrow we鈥檒l look at the lengths some communities seek to go to protect coastal homes.
A couple of miles north of Newport, Highway 101 runs above Moolack Beach, affording breath-taking views of the Pacific.
The highway is straight and relatively flat in this spot, so not a big engineering challenge. But the planning director for Lincoln County, Onno Husing, can stand here and watch bits of tarmac crumble into the ocean, 80 feet below.
鈥淚t鈥檇 be pretty hard to stand here and look at what we鈥檙e looking at, and not be concerned,鈥� he said recently.
On the beach, waves roll in constantly, in the process steadily eroding the land supporting the highway. Thousands of people drive this stretch to get to work everyday, or because they live in Lincoln City or Tillamook. Highway 101 is a lifeline, linking communities across the coast.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 need to be an engineer to understand that the highway is threatened,鈥� Husing said.
Moolack Beach is just one of dozens of problem spots along Highway 101. Husing and other experts say the road needs reinforcing, especially with what鈥檚 known in the engineering world as rip rap 鈥� placing large rocks at the base of the road to break-up wave energy and reduce ocean erosion.
But the Oregon Department of Transportation isn鈥檛 allowed to use rip rap along Highway 101, because back in 1977, the adopted as part of Oregon鈥檚 comprehensive land use planning effort. That rule blocked the use of rip rap for any new development, unless there鈥檚 an exception.
This was near the beginning of the environmental movement. Goal 18 was a way of ensuring Oregon鈥檚 coast didn鈥檛 come to resemble California 鈥� with hundreds of miles of oceanfront rip rapped against erosion.
Many people don鈥檛 like the way rip rap looks. And it can cause waves to scour the beach of sand. That means that eventually, there鈥檚 no more beach left for the public to enjoy.
But developers are an imaginative bunch. As soon as Goal 18 was adopted, they started pushing back against the definition of 鈥渄evelopment鈥� in the state rules. In 1984, the state officially defined the term to include
Meg Reed, a coastal specialist with the Oregon Land Conservation and Development Commission, said the new definition has gaps: 鈥淭hat definition does not include public infrastructure,鈥� she said. 鈥淩oads, sewer lines, campgrounds, lighthouses: it doesn鈥檛 include any of that in the definition.鈥�
In other words, using rip rap to protect Highway 101 hasn鈥檛 been allowed for 45 years. And that鈥檚 a challenge for a road that runs right up against the coast for many of its 363 miles.
Highway 101 is the backbone of Oregon鈥檚 coastal transportation system. It , as cars were becoming more common. Squeezed between the ocean and the steep slopes of the Coastal Range, the highway has never been as important to interstate commerce as, say, Interstate 5. But it is key to linking coastal communities together.
It鈥檚 also a testament to engineers that Highway 101 has lasted close to 100 years with relatively few upgrades.
But in 2002, the Oregon Department of Transportation identified 25 sites of concern. They included areas of the highway being undercut by erosion, or in danger from landslides, floods, sea level rise and storm surges. As coastal residents know, it鈥檚 not uncommon for stretches of 101 to be closed for days, weeks or even more. In some spots, closures mean travelers have to drive all the way into the Willamette Valley to reach their destination.
So in response, state leaders decided it was time to rewrite Goal 18 so the highway can be repaired. Suggestions were put forward by developers and environmentalists. Public meetings were held. Reed said in the end it became very controversial.
鈥淚t got pretty far until it came to our commission for its final hearings, and then there was a big public outcry from many different sides,鈥� Reed said.
In the end, the state decided not to touch Goal 18, so Highway 101 remains unreinforced.
Fast forward another 20 years, and those 25 areas of concern identified by the transportation department are now more like areas of alarm.
The Oregon transportation department has bolted rulers across some cracks to check for movement. They鈥檙e also digging wells to monitor the groundwater. A change in groundwater levels can predict or even cause a landslide.
The the state has decided to try to re-write Goal 18 again. But this time, they鈥檙e limiting themselves to one small tweak.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to put in a specific exception for public roads along the oceanfront that were developed as of January 1, 1977,鈥� Reed said.
Geoff Crook with the state transportation department says Highway 101 definitely needs work. 鈥淥DOT very much welcomes any change to the current Goal 18 exception process,鈥� he said.
But rewriting Goal 18 worries environmental groups.
Briana Goodwin with the said advocates understand Highway 101 needs to be safe. But they鈥檙e worried changing Goal 18 might allow more development and add to the scouring of beaches.
鈥淲e know that developers are waiting to see what happens with Highway 101,鈥� Goodwin said. 鈥淎nd we do expect that if the law is loosened up at all or any loopholes are opened, that there will be a lot more applications for Goal 18 exceptions.鈥�
Meanwhile, bits of Highway 101 continue crumbling into the sea. Lincoln County planner Onno Husing said if the road gave-out underneath his feet, emergency rules would allow diggers on site within hours to shove rip rap into place and reopen the highway.
鈥淥DOT would be in here on an emergency basis,鈥� Husing said. 鈥淚t鈥檇 make your head spin. They鈥檒l come in here and they鈥檒l fix that.鈥�
He said local authorities think Highway 101 is just too important to fall into disrepair. They also think there are better ways of maintaining an important road than waiting for emergency repairs.
The Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development has put together an advisory committee to come up with draft rule language. The committee is small businesses representatives, environmentalists, someone from the Oregon Department of Transportation, a Tillamook County public works representative, a Coos County commissioner and others.
Their language will be finalized by staff and legal counsel at the state. A seven-member commission, appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Oregon Senate, will then have a series of public hearings this summer to talk about the proposed rule.
The commission is expected to vote on the issue in July.
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