City of Portland, OR
05/22/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 05/22/2026 13:51
Planning Commission votes to recommend an increase in natural area protections in the Columbia Corridor to City Council
Label: News article
View full size image of Photo shows waterway winding from left to right with trees, muddy banks, and piles of wood along the sides.
The City of Portland has released a proposal to remap environmental protections. These proposals have been refined based on public feedback that was submitted in response to the previous draft. You are invited to submit testimony to a Planning Commission hearing on Jan. 13, 2026.
Published
May 22, 2026 12:30 pm
On May 12, 2026, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the Columbia Corridor and Industrial Lands Ezone Project (CCIL Ezone Project) Proposed Draft to City Council. The Planning Commission voted to include four amendment packages in the recommendation. The recommendation comes after over 5 months of review by the commission.
About the Columbia Corridor Industrial Lands Environmental Overlay Zone Project
The CCIL Ezone Project updates natural resource protections in several areas in Portland. Most of the project area is comprised of the Columbia Slough and Columbia River watersheds in north Portland. The project area also includes properties in and around dispersed industrial areas in northwest Portland, northeast Portland, and the Johnson Creek watershed.
The project will make decisions on the mapping of environmental overlay zones in the project area based on an updated mapping of natural resources. Other updates include amending the zoning code chapters that apply to environmental zones and replacing the existing natural resource protection plans.
The CCIL is being planned in coordination with the citywide Economic Opportunities Analysis (EOA), which ensures that Portland has adequate land to meet the needs of future population growth and economic development.
What are environmental overlay zones?
Environmental overlay zones (ezones) are a tool used by the City of Portland to protect important natural features such as rivers, streams, wetlands and vegetation. These features provide important benefits such as water quality improvements, stormwater management, and wildlife habitat.
In the Columbia Corridor, there are two types of ezones - Environmental Conversation (c zone) and Environmental Protection (p zone). The c zone is applied to natural features that are important but where some environmentally sensitive development may be permitted. The p zone is applied to the most critical features, where development should be avoided except under special circumstances.
View full size image of A graphic that demonstrates the difference between environmental protection zones and environmental conservation zones
Planning Commission review process
There were 6 steps in the Planning Commission review process:
January 13, 2026: Public Hearing
February 24, 2026: Work Session
May 12, 2026: Work Session, Amendments, and Final Vote
Public testimony
The Planning Commission considered 32 pieces of oral testimony and 84 pieces of written testimony. Much of the testimony was focused on natural resource mapping and draft ezones proposed on individual sites. Also included in testimony were broader themes, including the importance of protecting natural resources and the potential impacts of those natural resource protections on residential, commercial and industrial development.
At the Planning Commission work sessions, project staff summarized the testimony received and responded to site-specific requests. Staff then recommended amendments for Planning Commission consideration. These amendments were based on testimony, the outcomes of site visits (as applicable), and comprehensive reviews of individual site characteristics.
Amendments
The Planning Commission voted to incorporate four amendment packages into the CCIL Proposed Draft. The packages addressed the following:
- Clarifications and additions to the proposed zoning code amendments.
- Modifications to ezone application that result in changes to multiple sites.
- Updates to natural resource mapping and/or Proposed Draft ezones on sites addressed in testimony.
- Amendments to natural resource mapping and/or Proposed Draft ezones based on site visits (were not addressed in testimony).
Details on these amendments can be found in the Planning Commission work session memos from April 14, April 28 and May 12.
Next steps
Project staff will incorporate the Planning Commission amendments into a new draft, referred to as the Recommended Draft, to be considered by City Council.
City Council hearings on the CCIL Ezone Project and the Economic Opportunities Analysis will be scheduled for fall 2026.
Once the Recommended draft is released, the public will be able to submit written testimony through the CCIL Ezone Project Map App or sign up to testify orally at City Council hearings.
Learn more and sign up for updates
More information about the project is available on the project website. You can also contact project staff with comments or questions by email at [email protected].
City of Portland, OR published this content on May 22, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on May 22, 2026 at 19:51 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]