Pointing Fingers at Nonpoint Source Polluters: How a Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program Could Influence Forestry Practices in Oregon’s Coastal Zone

The Clean Water Act regulates the discharge of pollutants into waters of the United States. Despite nonpoint pollution accounting for most water pollution, the Clean Water Act has few mechanisms to address such pollution. For coastal communities, this is of particular concern. Indeed, this concern facilitated a regulatory regime under the Coastal Zone Management Act and, subsequently, the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments. These acts use established coastal management programs as a regulatory vehicle to drive nonpoint pollution mitigation in the coastal zone through the implementation of a Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program. Oregon has an established coastal management program. However, it has yet to achieve full approval of its Nonpoint Program. Using Maine’s and Washington’s fully approved Nonpoint Programs as a framework, this Article proposes an avenue for Oregon to submit a fully approvable Nonpoint Program. Like Maine and Washington, Oregon’s forest industry is paramount to its identity and economy. However, current timber industry practices have slowed Nonpoint Program development. While Oregon first, and unsuccessfully, submitted its Nonpoint Program to NOAA and EPA for approval in 2015 and codified the Private Forest Accord in 2022, it has yet to take affirmative steps to develop an approvable Nonpoint Program. To that end, this article is an instructive proposition to address the additional forestry-related management measures NOAA and EPA directed Oregon to adopt in their 2015 findings. Addressing these additional management measures is the threshold for the ultimate approval of Oregon’s Nonpoint Program