The amount of debris floating across the Pacific Ocean to the West Coast following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan is on the downhill side according to a spokesperson for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Dept. Chris Havel says they are not seeing as much of the debris washing ashore between Brookings and Astoria. Coastal monitoring, warning signs and access to disposable bags at beach access points were utilized by state officials in an effort to gather anything suspected. The largest piece to hit an Oregon beach was the 66-foot dock that washed up on Newport’s Agate Beach in 2012. It was cut up and a piece is on display at a memorial to the tragedy in Japan near the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport’s South Beach. Havel says their statewide tsunami debris hotline now averages about a call a day. Smaller pieces of Styrofoam, wood, and plastic possibly from Japan will most likely continue to trickle in for the next several years.
