|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
|
More than 85 percent of oyster reefs have already been lost, says a new report.
The Conservancy is working with partners around the world to restore shellfish habitat. 
The problems facing our marine resources are complex. But with your help, we can change the course for our oceans and coasts and the people who depend on them. 
By Christine Griffiths
If you either live or vacation in the area extending from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to Cape Canaveral, Florida, you have enjoyed the beauty — and most likely the bounty — of some of the least disturbed coastline and the best water quality in the estuaries along the U.S. Atlantic coast. View a map.
Scientists recognize this 300,000-square kilometre area as one of the most biologically diverse and productive marine areas in the North Atlantic.
Termed the Carolinian Ecoregion, this stretch of coast supports vital shellfish habitat and large concentrations of fish species vital to multi-million dollar commercial and recreational fishing industries.
The ecoregion — a geographic area that shares similar ecological characteristics — is distinguished by a wide continental shelf, extensive sandy barrier islands and beaches, estuaries and lagoons teeming with aquatic life, vast coastal marshes and major rivers that empty into the ocean.
Nature.org spoke with Mary Conley, marine conservation coordinator for the Conservancy, about the ecological importance of the Carolinian Ecoregion and what the organization is doing to restore and safeguard this area.
Nature.org: What factors are threatening the natural resources of the Carolinian Ecoregion?
Mary: Many historical activities in the land and water have altered our coastal environment — from overharvesting fish and shellfish to rice cultivation and ditching to destructive forestry practices.
Current threats like development, sea level rise, harmful fishing practices and invasive species continue to degrade wetlands, tidal creeks, marshes and barrier islands and the many fish and shellfish that depend on these habitats.
Nature.org: How is the Conservancy working to conserve this ecoregion?
Mary: We are working with private and public partners, including local communities, to conserve the all the natural resources that contribute to the biological health of the area — freshwater rivers, marshes and tidal creeks, barrier islands, coral and shellfish reefs, and the sandy bottoms of the South Atlantic Continental Shelf.
Our strategies include protecting coastal lands and addressing the impacts of sea level rise. But one of our more exciting strategies is habitat restoration, particularly restoring oyster reefs which are in severe decline.
Nature.org: Tell us more about the oyster reef restoration work.
Mary: Depending on the estuary and the location, oyster reefs help to maintain water quality, minimize shore erosion and provide food and shelter for fish and invertebrates such as crabs and shrimp. But native oysters are not just highly threatened, they're functionally extinct in many areas.
Scientists estimate a loss of about 85 percent of the world’s oyster habitat, a statistic reflected in Georgia’s estuaries. In North Carolina’s Albemarle-Pamlico Sound, the situation appears even more severe with oyster habitat reduced to less than 10 percent of historic levels.
Overharvesting, pollution, disease and lack of substrate for the oyster larvae to attach to are among the culprits. Read the recent Shellfish Reefs at Risk report.
The Conservancy is working to restore oyster reefs in the ecoregion’s four states, with each project unique in method and conservation goals. But at each project site, we are helping to restore healthy estuarine and marine habitat.
- In North Carolina, the Conservancy is working to build oyster reefs along the Albemarle Peninsula to reduce wave action and limit marsh erosion. The effort is part of a larger project to ensure a resilient coastline that will adapt to the effects of sea level rise.
- In South Carolina, the Conservancy is working with state, federal and private partners to test new methods of oyster reef restoration in a portion of Bulls Bay that is closed to oyster harvesting.
- In Georgia, the Conservancy and state and federal partners are embarking on two projects in the tidal creeks of the Altamaha River to test the use of organic materials—including oyster shells—to restore degraded habitat.
- In Florida, the Conservancy has spear-headed a community-based effort in Indian River Lagoon to restore oyster reefs damaged from boat wakes. Staff and volunteers are using specially designed oyster shell mat to encourage the growth of oyster reefs. Learn about volunteer opportunities in Florida.
Nature.org: Ultimately, what do you envision for the future of the Carolinian Ecoregion?
Mary: Right whales travel through the waters, loggerhead turtles and shorebirds nest on the sandy beaches, fish and shellfish feed and spawn in the estuaries—these are just some of the naturally occurring phenomenon of the Carolinian Ecoregion. We want to see the key resources of the ecoregion safeguarded, and in some places restored, so the wildlife and people that depend on these resources can flourish.
Our conservation efforts are aimed at making the Carolinian Ecoregion a healthy and resilient marine system, one that can endure human uses and environmental changes for generations to come.
Christine Griffiths is a marketing specialist with the Conservancy based in coastal Georgia. She can be reached at cgriffiths@tnc.org.
Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): photo © Erika Nortemann/TNC (Altamaha estuary, GA); Photo © Courtesy of Mary Conley/TNC (Mary Conley); photo © Marc Del Santro (Little St. Simons Island, GA); photo © Erika Nortemann/TNC (Wild oyster reefs, GA); photo © Anne Birch/TNC (Florida oyster reef restoration); photo © Mark Godfrey/TNC (Chesapeake Bay oysters); photo © Erika Nortemann/TNC (Charlie Phillips digs for clams in Georgia estuary); photo © Karen Christopher (Loggerhead sea turtle).
Join The Nature Conservancy on