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TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2026

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Coquille innovator develops wave-energy devices

BY DEAN BRICKEY

COQUILLE —John Clark Hanna sees himself as a seed-planter. But Hanna’s seeds aren’t planted in a garden or a farm ﬁeld. He’s an innovator who’s planted seeds in the ocean for the next generation, which could produce electricity from his ideas. He’s not optimistic, however. Hanna, an octogenarian who has been developing wave-energy turbines and generators for

years, strongly believes that the movement of ocean water can power homes and equipment in the future. He has developed turbine and generator prototypes in his garage workshop and has proven them effective and efficient. The innovator believes there are two approaches to harnessing the ocean. He’s developed a turbine that captures oscillating air flows. He’s also developed a tidal drive that captures oscillating water flows. Together they demonstrate Hanna’s vision of

simple power-take-off systems. Hanna directs Hanna Wave and Tidal Power Drives, also known as WetGen, based in Coos Bay, Ore. His website retains that name: www.wetgen.com, where he offers “innovative primary drives for the wave energy sector.” Today, he still dabbles in his wave-energy projects, but he considers it a pastime. He never did consider his development efforts to be a business venture. “I’m just a not-for-proﬁt inventor with an odd hobby,” Hanna said. “Two of my patents have been assigned to MRE (marine renewable energy) developers, but nothing has been built. I’m not optimistic for the future of wave energy development, especially in the U.S.” Hanna, 85, recognizes he’ll probably never see the beneﬁts of his research and development. “There does exist the potential for wave and tidal device man-

ufacturing in our area,” Hanna said. “We have a bounty of steel fabricators and engineering talent here. But, without a global market, nothing will ever get built.” He says Coos Bay would be an ideal location for manufacturing marine renewable energy. “The potential for Coos Bay is alluring, but it’s going to be up to the next generation to make it happen. I’m just planting the seeds.” Because he’s more interested in collaborating with others, rather than trying to develop his own business, Hanna has posted all of his research and development information online for anyone to use. “The goal is to share my ‘open-source’ wave and tidal energy drivetrains with global marine renewable energy developers,” he said. “By offering these simple and proven technologies at no cost, it should help reduce the use of fossil fuels

in the future and stimulate the evolving “blue economy.” During the past decade, he has designed innovative power-take offs (PTOs) for international and domestic wave and tidal energy developers, including two other technologies on which he intended to apply for patents, he said, “But the patent process is ponderous and time-consuming and time is running out.” He believes climate change is at a tipping point. “It may already be too late to reverse the pending catastrophe,” he said, “So I have decided to offer both of my inventions as ‘open-source’ technologies. With the appropriate citation, they are freely available to developers around the world.” His coaxial tidal wave drivetrain, Hanna said, is revolutionary, but “the converters that are See INNOVATOR Continued on Page 12

Gov. Kotek signals she’ll veto bill changing Oregon public meetings law criticized by journalists But the Oregon chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, the Oregon News Publishers Association, The Oregonian and roughly a dozen small publishers, called on Kotek to veto the bill. They warned throughout the session that it fundamentally redefined what constitutes meetings and deliberations in a way that would allow public officials to do important work in private with little transparency. During the session, leaders from the Oregon Government Ethics Commission — tasked with enforcing the public meetings law — shared testimony expressing many of the same concerns as the press advocates. State lawmakers passed it anyway, vowing to come back in 2027 to make fixes that might be needed.

The bill, meant to create clarity about what public officials can call and text about outside of public meetings, would be Gov. Kotek’s only veto following 2026 session BY ALEX BAUMHARDT

Oregon Capital Chronicle

Following outcry from professional journalist groups and Oregon news publishers, Gov. Tina Kotek is considering vetoing a bill passed last month by the state Legislature that makes changes to the state’s public meetings law. Kotek on Thursday did her final signings for all but one bill, House Bill 4177. In a news release Friday she said she is considering a veto of the bill, which would be her only veto of laws passed by the Oregon Legislature in the most recent session that adjourned on March 6. Kotek has 30 days to sign a bill if it was delivered to her after adjournment, and must announce any plan to veto a bill at least five days before filing her decision deadline, which is April 17. A two-thirds vote of both houses

Roger Averbeck addresses his neighbors at the Wallowa County Commission meeting on Aug. 23, 2023, calling on them to find a compromise in the debate to join Idaho. can override a governor’s veto. In a statement, a Kotek spokesperson wrote: “The Governor understands the intent of the legislation, however she is considering a veto because of concerns that parts of the bill may undermine transparency in the conducting of public business.” The bill was backed by city and county governments and associations and school boards

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who wanted to provide clarity on a 2023 law that changed Oregon public meetings law, prohibiting public ofﬁcials from deliberating and deciding measures via text, phone call and other chain conversations to circumvent state public meetings law. House Bill 4177 exempts from the meetings law such “serial communications” if they are “made for the purpose of gathering information relating to

Oregon Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lynne Terry for questions: info@oregoncapitalchronicle.com.

a decision that will be deliberated upon or made by the governing body.” Bill proponents said it was needed to clarify that public ofﬁcials aren’t violating state law when they text an article related to an issue to one another, or share their opinion with a reporter ahead of a vote, who then shares that opinion with other members of the governing body in the course of the reporting.

https://oregoncapitalchronicle. com/2026/04/10/gov-kotek-signals-shell-veto-bill-changing-oregon-public-meetings-law-criticized-by-journalists/

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