Oyster reefs are an integral part of the health of waterways in Fairhope, Alabama. Established eel grass beds help to stabilize the bottom and provide greater resistance against wave action. Healthy reefs and vegetation protect valuable habitats, reduce wave energy, prevent erosion, and bolster wetlands as a protective barrier. Unfortunately, oyster populations have dropped by 85% worldwide since the end of the 19th century. In Alabama, researchers are striving to restore oyster reefs in order to protect climate-threatened coastlines.
This involves fortifying young oysters against predators and hardening them to increase their survival rate in Mobile Bay. When restored and managed as a sustainable resource, oyster reefs can add billions of dollars in value to the economy. In the Chesapeake Bay, oyster populations represent only 1 to 2 percent of historic levels due to disease, pollution, habitat loss, and overfishing. Oysters live in salty or brackish coastal waters and are grouped together in older shells, rocks, docks, or any hard submerged surface. When only used as a place to harvest commercial oyster meat, they can degrade. Across the country, nearly 17,000 volunteers have taken part in NOAA oyster restoration projects.
In some places, oyster reefs can protect underwater vegetation and coastal communities from some of the effects of waves, floods and tides. Experiments are being conducted to rotate harvesting areas so that oysters have time to grow and resistant varieties are raised. Waste, toxins and excess nutrients end up in the water, weakening oysters and increasing the spread of diseases. To ensure that there are enough oysters in a tributary to produce a self-sufficient population, these projects are significantly larger than other similar projects that were completed just a decade ago. Continuous dredging in estuaries on the Atlantic coast has resulted in a significant loss of three-dimensional reef structures. Oyster reefs provide numerous benefits for Fairhope's waterways.
They help stabilize the bottom and provide greater resistance against wave action. Healthy reefs and vegetation protect valuable habitats, reduce wave energy, prevent erosion, and strengthen wetlands as a protective barrier. Restoring oyster reefs can add billions of dollars in value to the economy while protecting climate-threatened coastlines. NOAA's oyster restoration projects involve fortifying young oysters against predators and hardening them to increase their survival rate in Mobile Bay. Experiments are being conducted to rotate harvesting areas so that oysters have time to grow and resistant varieties are raised.
To ensure that there are enough oysters in a tributary to produce a self-sufficient population, these projects are significantly larger than other similar projects that were completed just a decade ago.
