Oyster Bay Recycles Shells From Annual Oyster Fest Back Into LI Waters

OYSTER BAY, NY — Oyster and clam shells are a critically limited natural resource, which is why it's so important that they're recycled, the Town of Oyster Bay's environmental experts said.

Deputy commissioner of Town Department of Environmental Resources Colin Bell said that there are a surplus of benefits to recycling the shells.

"They're the foundation that baby shellfish (called spat) attach to and grow on," Bell said. "Shells that are thrown out with the trash end up in landfills. Recycling them keeps them local and allows us to use them to restore shellfish habitat, improve water quality, and protect shorelines."

Bell and the Town's environmental experts said this is a successful program with tremendous benefits.

"It’s truly a win-win: less waste in landfills, more habitat in the water," Bell said.

By recycling shells, there are so many positives, as outlined by Bell:

• Harden the bay bottom by placing shell substrate back into the water, creating a firm foundation instead of soft mud.
• Provide natural attachment points for oyster larvae — shell is the best and most biologically preferred material.
• Jump-start the formation of new oyster reefs, which support marine biodiversity and become living habitats for hundreds of species.

Even more so, shells create structure, which then creates habitat, helping Long Island's nature, Bell said: "Habitat brings life back into the bay."

New oysters grow on those recycled shells, which then begin filtering the water, with these small, but mighty creatures capable of filtering up to 50 gallons per oyster per day, Bell said.

He said this could improve "water quality and clarity, which supports eelgrass, fish nurseries, and the overall health of the ecosystem."

Oyster Bay's beloved annual Oyster Festival produces several thousand pounds of shell each year, and the shells are all collected and recycled by the Town of Oyster Bay's Department of Environmental Resources, with the help of volunteers.

Bell said volunteers are vital to the shell recycling process, and they need the support after Oyster Fest, since the festival is the largest single shell collection event of the year.

"We rely on community volunteers to help collect and sort shells from the food vendors and festival goers’ plates into designated recycling containers," Bell said.

The team collected about 3,500 pounds of shells from this year's Oyster Fest festivities. They will all be returned to local Long Island waters after they are cured for a year, which is part of NYSDEC permit requirements.

The shell recycling program isn't specific to just Oyster Fest, and the town operates a year-round program that partners with local restaurants in Oyster Bay and the surrounding area.

Restaurants that serve oysters and clams can set aside the shells, and the town's Department of Environmental Resources will collect them and then transport them to the curing site to be recycled. For this part of the program, the collection management is exclusive to town staff due to handling requirements and sanitation protocols.

Bell said the program is a sustainable initiative with a huge environmental impact on Long Island and its waters.

"Instead of sending oyster and clam shells to a landfill, where they become waste, we return them to our local waters, where they become habitat for marine life," he said. "This program keeps valuable material in our local ecosystem and directly supports the health and resilience of Oyster Bay, the Long Island Sound, and surrounding waterways."

More information about the program, such as how to volunteer and restaurant partners, can be found online.