The need to address our climate crisis has made shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy a national priority. The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the agency charged with leasing ocean areas for energy development, has recently proposed two areas off Oregon’s coast for floating offshore wind turbines.

For far too long, Oregon has lagged woefully behind neighboring western states in our trap check requirements. Oregon’s current trapping policies currently allow animals to suffer in traps anywhere from 48 hours to 30 days, depending on how they are arbitrarily categorized by statute or rule.