Making Waves: Oyster Gardening Program

Leaving our world a little better than we found it is a one of the missions of Marine Solutions’ Making Waves platform. Much of our work is conducted underwater – an environment that can be dirty and dangerous. We have seen firsthand the effects that pollution has had at our underwater work sites and we are doing something to make that environment a little better.

Oysters filter water as they eat, which helps to clarify the water and remove certain pollutants, including nitrogen, which can trigger algae blooms that deplete the water of oxygen. An adult oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water a day. Oyster reefs, like coral reefs, also provide a habitat for hundreds of species including crabs, bass, and speckled trout. And they are a natural defense against storm damage – softening the blow of large waves, reducing flooding, and preventing erosion. Unfortunately, the oyster population has been depleted in many areas, including the Chesapeake Bay where much of our work is conducted.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation's (CBF) Oyster Gardening Program gives people the opportunity to help replenish this vital species by growing oysters alongside their docks. Marine Solutions' Maryland office crew has secured a dock and built cages where they are raising about 1,500 oyster spat (baby oysters). Employees will be volunteering a couple hours each week from September through May to tend the oysters. In the spring, the oysters will be returned to the CBF for planting on sanctuary oyster reefs in the Chesapeake Bay.
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Through our Making Waves program, Marine Solutions is proud to support our employees who are passionate about creating a better environment for generations to come. It starts with a ripple.

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