Efforts to restore or expand oyster colonies are underway around the coastal U.S. A look at some of them:
ALABAMA: 1,100 acres of oyster reefs created from 2009-14; additional work ongoing.
CALIFORNIA: Restoration programs in San Francisco and Richardson bays, among others.
CONNECTICUT: State borrowed $5.3 million for oyster restoration since 1987; enhanced 3,000 acres of existing beds.
DELAWARE: From 2005-09, a joint New Jersey-Delaware program deposited 2.4 million bushels of shells onto existing reefs in Delaware Bay.
FLORIDA: Multimillion-dollar restoration project in Pensacola Bay using limestone, recycled concrete and marsh plantings. State has restored coastal habitat including oyster reefs since 1994 through a grant program, has built 11 reefs throughout Florida panhandle and recycles shells from 28 restaurants; 900 oyster reefs established along 2 miles of shoreline in Santa Rosa County over past 20 years; MacDill Air Force Base installed half-mile oyster reef; volunteer groups restored 42 oyster sites since 2005.
