Oregon's north coast reopens for razor clamming after 'unprecedented' biotoxin closure
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Part of Oregon's northern coast reopened for razor clamming on Tuesday after an elevated level of a marine biotoxin in shellfish led officials to shut down harvesting on the entire Oregon coast in an "unprecedented event" that sickened dozens of people.
As of Tuesday, razor clam harvesting is open from the Washington border to the Yachats River but remains closed from the river to the California border due to high levels of paralytic shellfish poison and domoic acid, the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife announced.
A spokesperson for the department said its most recent tests showing safe biotoxin levels were reported on June 6 and June 14.
While different shellfish are showing improvement in biotoxin levels, officials said mussel harvesting and bay clamming remain closed on the entire Oregon coast.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture told KOIN 6 News there is no timeline for when other areas on the coast might open for harvesting, noting the department is continuing to monitor biotoxin levels.
The toxin is produced from Alexandrium, a marine algae that is commonly found off the Oregon coast. Officials said the reason why the toxin grew to a “huge bloom” and caused “severe toxicity” is not well understood.
According to the Oregon Health Authority, there have been 38 reported cases of paralytic shellfish poisoning and seven people have been hospitalized.
ODFW, OHA, and the Department of Agriculture held a joint press conference on May 31 announcing the closure on the entire Oregon coast, which marked an “unprecedented event” that has never been seen in Oregon based on the number of species impacted and individuals getting sick from PSP.
Officials initially said at least 20 people were sickened from the PSP outbreak after harvesting mussels from Short Beach near Oceanside, Hug Point, and Seaside.
Authorities added that climate change will impact the frequency of PSP as harmful algae increases in frequency and toxicity.