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Oyster Reef Restoration

Introduction

The Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica) is native to the southeastern United States and lives in estuaries and marine coastal environments. The first stage in an oyster’s life cycle is the free-swimming larval stage. After about three weeks, the larva attaches to a hard substrate—surface area to attach to—such as prop roots, dock pilings, natural rock, and other oysters becoming an oyster spat—oysters that have just settled to the bottom.A large number of oysters often join together, thus forming an oyster reef (also referred to as oyster bed, oyster mat). Once attached to a surface, oysters will stay there for the remainder of their lives.

The Eastern Oyster acts as a keystone species by filtering estuaries and maintaining healthy, coastal ecosystems. Almost 95% of the seafood consumed in the United States spends a portion of its life in these estuaries. Oyster reefs are able to survive in a wide range of reasonable salinity and temperature levels. According to the Southern Regional Aquaculture Center (SRAC), oysters in the southern part of the United States spawn when water temperatures are above 68 degrees. But they are affected more by the specific site where oyster restoration projects occur, the species of oysters used in a project, and if they are native to the surrounding area and disease free.

In addition to being a keystone species, oysters also serve as an indicator species—they are used to gather information on the overall health of the ecosystem. However, the majority of oyster populations have greatly declined within the last century due to over-harvesting, increased sedimentation, invasive species, pollution and disease. In response to this decline, many oyster restoration projects have been put into place throughout the southeastern United States. The projects develop a long-term strategy of sustained productivity for oyster reefs and restore the ecological role they provide to nearby reef habitats.

The Nature Conservancy states that oyster restoration is crucial to creating a balanced, healthy ecosystem by being a beneficial nursery for various juvenile marine species, filtering impurities in the water, as well as preventing coastline erosion. Additionally, they contribute to better water flow patterns within estuaries.

History

As mentioned above, a common species of oysters used in oyster restoration is the Eastern American oyster (Crassostrea virginica), but other variations are the American Oyster, Atlantic Oyster, Common Oyster and Virginia Oyster. Since the early Americas, oyster beds have been beneficial for the Aboriginal North American Indians, who harvested oysters for subsistence purposes. Since the 1800s oyster beds have been vital for commercial harvests and have generated substantial income. Unfortunately, there has been large declines of oyster beds in the coastal areas of the United States. Some reasons for this decline are overharvesting, pollution and other detrimental factors. As a result, this has spawned a need for oyster restoration projects in order to revitalize the depleted natural resource of the oyster population.

Techniques

The first step in oyster restoration is to determine the locations for potential reefs. This is often done by comprehensive surveys that measure salinity levels, water quality, previous existence of oyster reefs, substrate conditions, prevalence of diseases, tidal range, oxygen concentration, algae concentration, prevalence of predators, accessibility and security.

Once the location is determined, cultch—fossilized shell, coral or other similar materials produced by living organisms designed to provide points of attachment for oysters—is often obtained from sustainable recycling programs. Used oyster and clam shells from farmers and restaurants are collected and disinfected by volunteers to be used in oyster restoration. Once returned to the water, these recycled shells provide substrate for oyster larval eggs to begin populating oyster beds laid out by volunteers programs such as those implemented in Southwest Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provide the following techniques for the construction of oyster reefs:

• Quickly distributing large amounts of shell with high pressure hoses to provide cultch for oysters. This technique work in areas that have known, reliable spat set.

• Constructing a linear reef of shell and rock to stabilize the shoreline while protecting sea grass plantings behind the reef. The grass plantings also enhance shoreline stability and provide additional habitat for organisms.

• Collecting and bagging oyster shells for use as cultch for spat set. Serving as habitat for oysters and other associated organisms, these bags of oyster shell will help establish new oyster reefs in intertidal areas.

• Using a hatchery to provide seed oysters in areas where spat set is nonexistent or unreliable. This will establish new reefs and improve water quality in the local area.

According to Anne Birch, director of The Nature Conservancy, creating an oyster mat is “a simple concept: [You] take a sheet of environmentally safe mesh, tie oyster shells to it and weight it to the bottom of the lagoon. Connected together, the mats then create a huge welcome mat to attract free-floating larvae. The larvae settle and produce the backbone of a new, healthy reef within as little as a year’s time.”

Commonly in the southeastern U.S., mangroves and other shoreline vegetation are often planted in conjunction with oyster restoration efforts to provide substrate – surface area to attach to – and reduce shoreline erosion resulting in less sediment deposits within estuaries.

Oyster restoration in public waters often requires permits and licenses from various agencies with requirements varying from state to state. Most often permits typically involve the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, state natural resource agencies and state public health departments.

Goals

NOAA provides some of the major goals of an oyster restoration project:

• Augment commercial harvest

• Serve as habitat

• Improve water quality

• Increase or improve spat set in an area by creating oyster sanctuaries

• Maintain or increase biodiversity

• Restore ecological function

• Provide a barrier to prevent beach or shoreline erosion

• Protect and enhance sea grass restoration projects

Environmental value

As previously mentioned, intertidal oysters act as a keystone species by maintaining a healthy coastal ecosystem. They filter the water and increase water clarity by extracting organic and inorganic particles. The filtration capacity of an average adult oyster is estimated to be 50 gallons per day. Oysters not only clean the water, but also act as effective shoreline buffers by dissipating the energy caused by boat wakes and waves. Oyster reefs also support critical fisheries by providing habitat for numerous species of fish, crustaceans and shellfish.

The ecological value of reusing oyster shells for oyster restoration projects is vital not only for producing zero waste, but also for diversifying and increasing the number of oyster beds in a given area. In addition to environmental benefits, oyster restoration is also economically beneficial since coastal communities rely heavily on oysters for profit and subsistence.

Environmental preventative issues

Some ancient reefs are used to make restorative oyster reefs in nearby sites. However, to reduce the risk of environmental damage when dredging, many projects tend to stay away from this method of transplanting. Another issue of environmental harm is placing invasive or newly introduced oyster species in an unknown habitat that can cause more harm than good. Therefore, it is important to correctly place oyster species in their respective habitats to prevent environmental harm to nearby oyster reefs. More information is available in local extension agencies within the state you live in.

Economic value

Oyster reefs provide essential habitats for many ecological and economically important fish as well as invertebrate species. Healthy oyster populations improve the quality of water, which in turn improves commercial and recreational fishing, recreational boating, and ecotourism. All of these are beneficial to stimulating the economy for local communities. Not only does oyster restoration create additional jobs through the duration of projects, but it also safeguards many other jobs ranging from marine construction to scientific research jobs.

As stated earlier, oyster beds have been extremely profitable for commercial harvests in the 1800s; 10 million pounds per year were harvested during that time in the southeast alone. As a result, oyster restoration has become an important project in order to stabilize and stimulate economies in coastal communities of the United States. In addition to capitalistic economic profitability, there is a nature-based profitability for oyster restoration because they restore polluted waterways hindered by urbanization and other economic ecology issues.

Aquaculture

The research in aquaculture has been a major contributor to the development of viable oyster strains to assist the commercial aquaculture industry and local ecosystems. The industry of aquaculture is booming with global profits exceeding $3,000,000,000 annually. Oyster restoration projects assist in the production of aquaculture harvests and have different procedural measures for different areas of the United States.

Aquaculture techniques vary geographically and represent regional differences. Some areas of the U.S. have enacted policies to lease out areas for aquaculture businesses to utilize the oyster-restored beds. These leasing policies will prove beneficial to job creation in coastal areas, improve the surrounding economy, and restore habitats where oyster restoration projects and commercial businesses occur.

All in all, aquaculture has and will continue to gain recognition for providing sustainable harvesting methods.

Social value

Oyster restoration has many recreational benefits. Improved water clarity and overall cleaner water greatly increases recreational fishing, boating and swimming. This allows locals and tourists to appreciate the environment around them.

In many parts of the southeastern United States volunteer efforts are responsible for oyster restoration. Community-based oyster restoration programs allow people to become knowledgeable on the important benefits oysters provide to an ecosystem. This volunteerism connects individuals with their environment as well as ensures the existence of oyster populations for future generations to appreciate. Areas of the southeastern United States, such as the coastal areas in the Gulf of Mexico, have a rich tradition related to oysters and other marine food that coastal areas provide. Oysters are part of the social culture in these areas and oyster restoration is a step towards preserving their traditions.

In addition to volunteering with oyster restoration projects, individuals with shoreline property—or those who have access to it—have the option of backyard shellfish gardening. This sustainable form of oyster harvesting allows for personal consumption or environmental enhancement and usually does not require special licenses or permits.

Specific examples in the southeastern United States

Florida

The Oyster Reef Restoration began in June 2009 and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2010. The project is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The goal of the project is to restore the important oyster habitat in the St. Lucie and Loxahatchee Estuaries, two of the largest brackish water systems on the east coast of Florida, where over the last 50 years oyster populations have declined by as much as 75%.

The Nature Conservancy recognizes the following partners who have or are currently working on oyster restoration projects:

Brevard Zoo
Brevard County Parks and Recreation
Canaveral National Seashore Citizen volunteers
Disney Friends for Change
East Volusia County Mosquito Control
Florida Coastal Management Program
Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program
Marine Discovery Center
Marine Resources Council
Mosquito Lagoon Aquatic Preserve
NOAA's Community-based Restoration Program
Private donors
RRI Energy
Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines
St. John's River Water Management District
University of Central Florida
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program

Georgia

Generating Enhanced Oyster Reefs in Georgia’s Inshore Areas (G.E.O.R.G.I.A.) is a volunteer-based program with the goal of enhancing stewardship and public awareness of oyster reef habitat along the Georgia coast, where previous oyster beds are essentially non-existent. The program recycles oyster shells from local seafood restaurants to use as cultch in new oyster reefs. Volunteers of the oyster reef building and monitoring are trained by the Marine Extension Service and building takes place every spring.

South Carolina

South Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement (SCORE) is another volunteer oyster restoration movement. SCORE operates under the direction of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) and began in May 2001. The sites span approximately 200 miles of the South Carolina coastline and have constructed 188 oyster reefs at 35 sites since the program began. According to SCORE’s website:

• Over 25,000 volunteer hours donated by more than 8,000 individuals

• Collected and processed more than 600 reef samples containing more than 300,000 spat in annual reef assessments

• Recycled and bagged over 20,000 bushels of oyster shell

• Returned more than 500 tons of oyster shell to the local waters by constructing almost 41,000 square feet of oyster reef footprint (about an acre)

• Approximately 25 teams of trained volunteers monitor water quality weekly at most sites

• Marsh grass is growing in behind many SCORE reefs

• SCORE received the prestigious Coastal America Partnership Award in 2004

North Carolina

The Eastern Oyster populations of the Tar-Pamlico and Neuse River basins have plunged 97% to 3% of historic numbers throughout the last century. In response to this drastic change, the Citizens’ Oyster Gardening Project (COGP) began. COGP is an environmental demonstration project that encourages oyster gardening aimed to reestablish populations of native Eastern Oysters in North Carolina through education and aquaculture methods. Educational workshops teach volunteers how to measure water quality and give information on oyster gardening techniques as well as necessary tools and materials. Advocacy through networking by volunteers is key to COGP’s success.

Project partners of COGP include:

Carteret Community College’s (CCC) Aquaculture Technology Department
Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program (APNEP)
Shellfish Gardeners of North Carolina (SGNC)
The North Carolina Coastal Federation (NCCF)
North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve Program (NCNERR)
The Nature Conservancy (TNC)-Nags Head Woods Preserve
North Carolina Sea Grant (NCSG)
North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF)

Sources

1. http://www.fao.org/fishery/culturedspecies/Crassostrea_virginica/en
2. http://www.oysterrestoration.com/faq.html
3. http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/easternoyster/
4. http://www.marex.uga.edu/shellfish/oysterrest.html
5. http://www.habitat.noaa.gov/restoration/techniques/oysterrestoration.html
6. http://www.southalabama.edu/marinesciences/oysterproposal.doc
7. http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/florida/misc/art26796.html#partners
8. http://www.sms.si.edu/IRLSpec/Oyster_reef.htm
9. http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/easternoyster/
10. http://el.erdc.usace.army.mil/elpubs/pdf/er01.pdf
11. http://www.fgcu.edu/CAS/OysterResearch/volunteers.html
12. http://www.fgcu.edu/CAS/OysterResearch/2768.asp
13. http://www.ncfisheries.net/shellfish/recycle1.htm
14. http://saltwaterfishing.sc.gov/oyster.html
15. http://www.shellfish.uga.edu/pdf/brochures/ga_program_07_proof2.pdf
16. http://www.marsci.uga.edu/gaseagrant/pdf/MAREX%20BULLETIN%20VOL.%208%20Intertidal%20Growth.pdf
17. http://www.governor.maryland.gov/pressreleases/091203.asp
18. http://www.ncseagrant.org/home/coastwatch/coastwatch-articles?task=showArticle&id=519
19. http://www.nature.org/files/lease_sub_lands.pdf
20. https://www.oysterrecovery.org/Content/ContentDisplay.aspx?ContentID=88
21. http://score.dnr.sc.gov/deep.php?subject=24
22. http://aquanic.org/species/shellfish/documents/oysterrestoration.pdf
23. http://main2.carteret.edu/~kemps/files/Oyster%20Gardening%20Manual%20print.pdf
24. http://www.carteret.edu/aqu/cogp/