US: Maryland selects locations for three new oyster-restoration sanctuaries

Published Oct 31, 2024

Tridge summary

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is planning to create three new oyster-restoration sanctuaries in the Chesapeake Bay, building on the success of previous efforts to rebuild the oyster population. The sites, located in Herring Bay, the Nanticoke River, and Hoopers Straight, will be permanent harvesting bans, except for specific aquaculture lease sites, to allow undisturbed growth of oysters. The DNR aims to connect oyster restoration with watershed restoration and hopes that the sites' varying salinity levels will balance disease risk in oyster populations. Work at two of the sites is expected to begin in 2026, while the Nanticoke River site may start sooner.

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Original content

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will create three new oyster-restoration sanctuaries, continuing the work of the department to restore the historic oyster beds of Chesapeake Bay. The sites, in Herring Bay, the Nanticoke River, and Hoopers Straight, will build on the success of previous efforts to rebuild the Chesapeake’s oyster population, which once sustained one of the most valuable fisheries in the bay but has since reached historic lows due to decades of overfishing, pollution, and disease. “These three large-scale restoration sanctuaries represent a new chapter for oyster restoration in Maryland,” Maryland DNR Secretary Josh Kurtz said in a statement. “We’ve had tremendous success with our existing restoration sanctuaries, and we’re excited to build on that achievement and keep up the momentum for oyster recovery in the Chesapeake Bay.” Oyster sanctuary restoration work started in the bay with the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, which began ...

Source: Seafoodsource