Reef Innovations
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Reef Innovations

Worldwide contractor for designed reef systems and marine habitat restoration

2013 article Chesapeake Bay oyster restoration.

  • Maryland USA
  • News articles
  • Shellfish Restoration
https://reefinnovations.com/archives/4288

Saving the Chesapeake Bay, One Oyster at a Time

Written by: Laura Wood


Recent low lunar tides along the Lafayette River offered an excellent opportunity to see the fruits of our oyster restoration work. Above, reef balls planted two years ago are now completely covered in oysters.
Photo by CBF Staff

Once so chock-full that Native Americans called it “great shellfish bay,” the Chesapeake has long since seen its oyster population decimated by overharvesting, pollution, and disease.

This is bad news for the Bay, and its rivers and streams. CBF’s Oyster Restoration and Fisheries Scientist Tommy Leggett explains, “Oysters are important to cleaning up the Bay. They filter huge amounts of water; nearly 50 gallons a day during the warmer months, and they grow in reefs that are home to many other Bay critters”—including blue crabs, striped bass, redfish, black drum, bluefish, white perch, speckled trout, and spot.

But, with support from friends like The Orvis Company, CBF is working to bring this vital species back from the brink.

Every year, with the help of thousands of volunteers, CBF plants tens of millions of baby oysters, builds and submerges hundreds of oyster reef balls onto protected sanctuary reefs in the waters of both Maryland and Virginia, collects oyster shells that are recycled into oyster reefs, works with local watermen on oyster aquaculture, and, runs a successful oyster gardener program.

Since 1998, CBF has planted more than 130 million oysters on 150 sanctuary reefs throughout the Bay. In what the Washington Post called a “modern day Lazarus story”, CBF’s work has helped reverse the oysters decline. In 2011, Virginia harvested the most oysters since 1989—roughly 236,000 bushels (up from 79,600 in 2005), and Maryland hauled in 121,000 (more than quadrupling its harvest from 2005 of 26,000).  Not only that, but in Maryland, their 2011 oyster survey showed the highest survival rate since 1985—92 percent—a sign that our continued efforts are paying off.

Working with partners like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, The Nature Conservancy, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, CBF is focusing its oyster restoration efforts on specific tributaries—Harris Creek, Severn River, and the Choptank and Little Choptank Rivers in Maryland, and the Lafayette, Elizabeth, and Piankatank Rivers in Virginia.

CBF knows we’re not going to save the Bay without oysters. With the help of partners like The Orvis Company, we’re restoring hope, not just for the Bay’s native oyster population, but for the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers and streams.

September 12, 2016 Reef Innovations

Post navigation

Norfolk’s Lafayette River Oyster Restoration Article from 2010 → ← San Francisco Shellfish Restoration

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  • Home
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  • About
    • The Reef Ball Foundation
    • Eternal Reefs
  • Products & Specs
    • Reef Balls
      • Oyster Ball
      • Lo-Pro
      • Mini Bay
      • Bay Ball
      • Pallet Ball
      • Ultra Reef Ball
      • Super Ball
      • Supra Ball
      • Goliath Ball
      • Goliath Ball Modification
      • Goliath Breakwater Ring
      • Goliath Breakwater with Base
      • Goliath with Extended Tall Base
      • Reef Ball on Sloped Base
      • Table Top
      • Model Reef Balls
    • Layer Cakes
      • Oyster Layer Cake
      • Lo-Pro Layer Cake
      • Mini Layer Cake
      • Bay Layer Cake
      • Ultra Layer Cake
      • Pallet Layer Cake
      • Super Layer Cake
      • Goliath Layer Cake
    • Reef Cubes
      • A Cube
      • B Cube
      • C Cube
      • D Cube
      • E Cube
      • 2 tier Reef Cube
      • 3 tier Reef Cube
      • 4 tier Reef Cube
      • 5 tier Reef Cube
      • Reef Cube with attached Reef Ball
    • Other Modules
      • Anchor
      • Chanel Marker Habitat
      • Deep Cover
      • Eco-Rap
      • Juvenile Habitat IJV
      • Mangrove Cultivating Pot
      • Smart Reef
    • Product and Service Price List
  • Ecosystem/Services
    • Blue Carbon Credits
    • Breakwater Construction
    • Breakwater Design
    • Deployment
    • Design & Consulting
      • Site Evaluation & Surveys
      • Custom Designs & Models
    • Diving Services
    • Ecosystem Restoration
      • Coral
      • Living Shoreline / Living Breakwaters
        • Erosion Control Project – Checklist
      • Mangrove Restoration
      • Oyster Reefs
        • Reef Balls produce more oysters.
      • Docks & Along Seawalls – A great place for Reef Balls
    • Habitats
      • Deep Cover Protective Habitat
      • EFH = Essential Fish Habitat
      • Layer Cake Lobster Habitat
      • Micro Habitat
      • Under Dock Habitats
      • Use of Reef Balls in River’s
    • Monitoring
    • Reef Ball Training & QC
    • Side Scan Sonar & DGPS
    • Volunteer Projects
  • Projects
    • Africa – Jambiani 2015
    • Atlantic Ocean Western
      • Bahamas
        • Bahamas – Baha Mar 2014 Cable Beach
        • Castaway Cay – Disney Crewesline
        • Deadman’s Reef Snorkeling the Reef Balls
        • Paradise Cove Grand Bahamas
        • Halfmoon Cay
        • Coco Cay
      • Canada
      • Caribbean Reef Balls
        • Antigua
        • Barbados
        • Dominican Republic
          • Cadaques
          • GRAN DOMINICUS BEACH RESORT
          • Canola Hilton Submerged Reef Ball Breakwater
        • Curacao
        • Jamaica
        • Antigua
        • St Maarten
      • Grand Caymen
      • Montserrat
        • Monstserrat
      • Nova Scotia
      • Turks & Caicos Islands
        • Beaches – Reef Ball Project
        • Providenciales
        • Smiths Reef
        • Pine Cay
        • Grand Turk
    • Europe
    • Mediterranean Sea
      • Spain
      • Italy
    • Mexico
      • Mayan Palace Submerged Breakwater
    • Middle East
      • Bahrain – Reef Arabia
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Bahrain
    • Pacific Ocean – Western
      • Indonesia – Reef Balls
      • Malaysia
        • Talang Talang
        • Sabah
        • Photos from Malaysia
    • US – West Coast
      • Alaska — Reef Balls in ALASKA
      • California
        • Point Pinole Regional Shoreline
        • Reef Ball Reef designed has for California 2013
        • Santa Barbara
        • Reef Ball Reef designed for California
    • US – North East
      • Connecticut
        • Stratford Point
      • Maryland
        • Chesapeake
          • Cooks Point – Reef Balls
        • Stevenson Reef Ball Project
        • Cook Point Reef Ball Site
        • Ocean City
        • Bay Area
        • Perry Hall
        • Talbot County
      • Massachusetts
      • New York
        • Bay Keepers Oyster Restoration Program
        • Jamaica Bay
        • West Harlem Waterfront Park 2006
        • Risherman (Yellowbar) Reef
        • NJ reef food web
      • New Jersey
        • Atlantic City Reef
        • New Jersey Eternal Reef Balls
      • Virginia
    • US – South East
      • Alabama
        • Dolphin Island
        • Alabama Off Shore Reef Balls
        • Coffee Island
        • Mobile County
      • Florida
        • Bay County
          • Mexico Beach, FL
        • Brevard CO
        • Broward County Reef Balls
          • Broward ORB
          • Ft. Laud / Miami
        • Charlotte County
          • Punta Gorda Isles
          • Port Charlotte
        • Collier
          • Naples
        • Dade County Reef Balls
          • Biscayne Bay
          • Loucif Project
        • Dixie County Reef Balls
        • Duval County
          • Charles H Kirbo Reef
          • St Johns River
        • Escambia Count Reef Balls
          • Laars Reef Ball Site
          • Pensacola
        • Flagler County Reef Balls
        • Franklin Count Reef Balls
        • Hernando Co.
          • Hernando County Reef 2017
        • Hillsborough Co.
          • Alafia Banks Bird Sanctuary
        • Indian River
        • Lee County
          • Ft. Myers
          • Midigation Projects
          • Ft. Myers / Naples
          • Cape Coral
        • Manatee Co.
          • Palmetto Eco-Rap
            • 2016 Palmetto Living Seawall Deployment
        • Monroe County
          • Islamarada
        • Oculina Bank home to 105 Reef Balls
        • Okaloosa County Reef Balls
        • Pinellas County
          • Largo
          • Clearwater
          • Maderia Beach
          • St. Petersburg
          • Treasure Island
        • Plam Beach
        • Santa Rosa
        • Sarasota
          • Sarasota County Reef Balls
          • Anglers Reef Sarasota, Florida
        • Seminole
        • St. Johns County
        • Tampa
        • Tampa Bay
          • Tampa Bay Watch
          • MacDill AFB Shore Enhancement
        • Volusia County Reef Balls
          • Daytona
      • Georga
      • Levy County – Nature Coast Biological Station
      • Louisiana
        • Lake Pontchartrain
      • Mississippi
        • FH-6
        • FH-8, FH-9, FH-10, & Cat Island
        • Mississippi FH2
      • South Carolina
        • Charleston
        • Myrtle Beach
      • Tennessee – Fish Habitat
      • North Carolina
        • Long Beach Pier, NC
        • Topsail Reef
        • Wilmington
        • Morris Landing Holly Ridge NC
        • North Carolina – South River Construction Site
        • Englehard, NC
        • Wanchese
        • Town of Oriental, North Carolina
        • Brunswick CO.
        • Topsail Island
      • Texas Projects
        • Galveston
        • Moses Lake
        • Texas – Oyster Lake
        • S Padre Island
        • Baytown
  • Science / Reference
    • Best Practices using Reef Balls on Living Shorelines.
    • Educational Projects with High School / Middle School Students
    • Photos
    • Posters
    • Presentations
      • J McFarlane’s Slide Decks from Presentations
    • Research Papers
      • Breakwater Research
      • Nutrient Enrichment increases severity of coral diseases and bleaching
      • Research – Coral Reefs Soften Ocean’s Fury for Millions of Coastal Dwellers
    • Research site specific, projects using Reef Balls
      • Breakwater Research using Reef Balls
      • Estuary Research projects using Reef Balls
    • Sharks & Reef Balls
    • Restore Act Science Program
    • Video’s
    • Sarasota Weather
  • Links
    • Volunteers building Reef Balls
  • Shop
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  • Posts
  • Contact
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