NewsLocal NewsIn Your CommunitySanibel

Actions

Oyster reef restoration project completed in Caloosahatchee Estuary to help clean Southwest Florida waters

Each oyster can filter 50 gallons of water daily, with hundreds packed into each square meter of the new reef near Shell Point.
Shell Point SCCF Oyster Reef
Posted

SANIBEL, Fla. — A major environmental restoration project has been completed in our Southwest Florida waters. The Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) recently finished work on a three-acre oyster reef near Shell Point in the Caloosahatchee Estuary.

Oyster reefs were once abundant across the Caloosahatchee Estuary, but unfortunately, we've lost about 90% of them over time.

The restoration project involved transporting over six million pounds of fossilized shell from Charlotte County to create the new reef structure.

"Right now, it is just shell. But as time goes on the oysters will settle from the water and grow into adult oysters," said Dr. Eric Milbrandt, the foundation's marine lab director.

METEOROLOGIST ANDREW SHIPLEY VISITED THE RESTORED REEF — WATCH HIS REPORT BELOW:

Oyster reef restoration project completed in Caloosahatchee Estuary to help clean Southwest Florida waters

Interestingly, the reef isn't being constructed with oyster shells as one might expect.

"So ideally, we would use oyster shells. Oyster shells in this country are harvested and many times they go on your restaurant plate then throw into the landfill," Milbrandt said. "So, they are totally wasted. We try to collect them where we can, but it is very labor intensive."

SCCF has already observed promising signs of success, with baby oysters beginning to attach to the shells.

"These spats are probably a week old, and they have settled on our reef. So, that is great. They will grow into oysters in about 18 months," Milbrandt said.

Recent years have been challenging for oyster populations in our waters. They've faced threats from red tide, low oxygen events, and most significantly, large changes in salinity.

"The intense flows that we get from the summer discharges and our connection to Lake Okeechobee and our management of freshwater is not always necessarily for the environment. It's for flood control and other purposes," Milbrandt said.

With recent changes to Lake Okeechobee management practices, there's hope that this reef and others will flourish and help naturally clean our estuary.

"They filter 50 gallons of water per oyster per day. And we are talking about 5 to 8 hundred oysters per square meter. Which is the size of your dinner table," Milbrandt said.

These reefs provide crucial habitat for Southwest Florida wildlife, supporting dozens of different birds, crabs, and fish species.

"In fact, subadult Redfish require this habitat in order from them to grow into large Redfish," Milbrandt said.

SCCF's commitment to reef restoration is only continuing to grow. Since 2007, the organization has restored seven acres of reef and plans to restore another 15 acres in the next several years.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Connect with your Community Correspondent

Anvar Ruziev