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Yaquina Basin Planning Team
The Yaquina
River
Physical Characteristics:
- The Yaquina River
is approximately 58.8 miles long with one major tributary, the Big
Elk, which is 29.7 miles long. It drains 253 square miles.
- The eastern 77% of
the basin is in the Tyee-Flournoy
formation with is mainly sandstone, shale, and conglomerates with
some basaltic intrusions, such as Mary's Peak.
- The western part
of the basin is composed of various siltstones or mudstones.
- Elevations range
from sealevel to 4,097 feet at the top of
Mary's Peak.
- The major streams
are of low gradient, falling 2 to 11
feet per miles. The gradient is steep only at the headwaters of the Yaquina River
and the Big Elk, where it may drop 60-90 feet per mile.
Economics:
- Newport,
at the river mouth, and Toledo,
upriver 10 miles, are the only two incorporated cities within the
basin.
- Unincorporated
communities in the basin include Moody, Morrison, Nashville,
Nortons, Oysterville,
Pioneer, South Beach,
Harlan, Chitwood, Eddyville, Elk
City, Salado, Winant,
and Yaquina.
- The basin consists
of 87% forest, 4% cropland, 2% rangeland, and 7% "other".
- Approximately 72%
of the basin is in private ownership. Much of the upper basin is
owned by large timber companies. Logging is a major activity in the
basin and wood products processing plants are located in Toledo
and Eddyville.
- Animal grazing and
hay and other crop production occurs in many of the flat, valley
areas. The most extensive agricultural lands are near Boone Slough.
- The economy of the
lower basin is based on fishing, seafood processing, forest products
export, and tourism.
- The estuary is
ranked the fourth largest within Oregon
(excluding the Columbia).
The bay is maintained as a deep water port by the US Army Corps of
Engineers. Estuarine marshes cover 819 acres surrounding the Yaquina estuary.
The Yaquina Basin Planning
Team meets the first Monday of each month. For more information email Debra
at debra@midcoastpartners.org.
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