US: Innovative technologies could help revive Florida's storied oyster fishery

A group of experts from the University of Florida have authored a report proposing the use of innovative technology that could help revive Florida’s once-prolific Apalachicola Bay oyster fishery. Apalachicola Bay, located in northwest Florida in the Gulf of Mexico, was long the source of most of the oysters sold in the southeast U.S. state and comprised about 10 percent of those sold across the entire country. The bay’s oysters were famous for their quality and taste and an economic driver in the region, producing USD 6.6 million (EUR 6 million) worth of sales in 2011.However, the fishery collapsed in 2012 due to a number of factors, including overharvesting in response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill, which increased demand for Apalachicola oysters. Rising salinity has also likely played a role, as the Apalachicola River which feeds into the bay was frequently diverted during droughts to surrounding cities and towns, creating conditions that favored predators. By 2013, the ...