'Direct Threat': Oregon Lawmakers Ring Alarm on Dismantling of Ocean-Monitoring Network
NSF will keep operating the remaining arrays and redeploy some equipment after Senate action blocked removal plans, officials said.
- On Thursday, the Trump administration reversed its plan to dismantle the Ocean Observatories Initiative after the U.S. Senate unanimously blocked the removal this week. The National Science Foundation confirmed it will cease further decommissioning and continue operations.
- The agency's May 21 intent to remove hundreds of deep-sea sensors sparked significant Congressional backlash. On Monday, 10 U.S. senators sent a bipartisan letter arguing the dismantling "threatens the safety of our coastal communities" while jeopardizing research.
- Oregon State Climatologist Larry O'Neill warned that losing the buoys, which collectively cost more than $386 million, represents a "huge step back." Scientists rely on these continuous, real-time measurements to monitor marine heat waves and extreme weather events.
- Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley sponsored the successful measure prohibiting the NSF from spending federal funds on removals. The agency stated Thursday it is developing plans to redeploy sensors off the Oregon coast after servicing.
- With El Niño conditions expected to strengthen this summer, the equipment remains essential for forecasting climate shifts. These sensors support fisheries management and prepare coastal communities for potential ruptures of the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a major Pacific Northwest fault line.
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14 Articles
Deep sea observation system that tracks climate change saved from disassembly
Researchers pull in a surface buoy that’s part of the Coastal Endurance Array on the West Coast, one of five stations in the national Ocean Observatories Initiative. (Photo courtesy of Kim Kenny/OSU) A critical deep ocean observation network that includes a long-standing station off the coast of Alaska has been saved from getting dismantled. As first reported by the New York Times, the Trump administration dropped its plan to get rid of the ocea…
Trump administration removal of ocean observatories is ‘direct threat’ to Oregon coast, lawmakers say
The buoys help assess ocean conditions for fishermen, mariners and scientists. A bipartisan group of lawmakers is calling on the National Science Foundation to put them back in the water.
MERKLEY/MURKOWSKI LEAD CHARGE TO BLOCK DISMANTLING OF MONITORING NETWORK
June 18, 2026 4:20 p.m. On Wednesday, U.S. Senators Democrat Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Republican Lisa Murkowski or Arkansas took to the Senate floor to successfully pass their bipartisan legislation that pauses the dismantling of the National Science Foundation’s Ocean Observatories Initiativ
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