Oyster restoration project began this week in the Apalachicola Bay

       

A 5 year oyster restoration research project began this week in the Apalachicola Bay.

The 4.2 million dollar project will look at the optimal amount of shell that is needed to make an oyster reef productive again.

Researchers are using three 10 acre sites around the bay to do the study.

Test sites include areas near Dry Bar, Hotel Bar and Bulkhead Bar.

The areas will be clearly marked with buoys so that people don’t accidentally harvest oysters from the test sites.

Each of three sites has plots planted with different amounts of fossil shell per acre – researchers hope that by comparing the oyster growth they will be able to ascertain the optimal amount of shell needed to create a working oyster reef.

The project is funded by a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation from money from the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

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