INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Oysters. They’re not just for dinner anymore. Turns out the humble and ubiquitous oyster could actually be a Superhero in the fight to protect and preserve the endangered Indian River Lagoon, and Sebastian is one of the players along the iconic waterway planning to utilize the amazing talents of these under-appreciated bivalves.
Since last summer, when the Sebastian City Council and the Natural Resources Board heard a presentation on the benefits of oyster mats in bringing the lagoon back to health, city staff and board members have been at work on an oyster mat project for local waters.
The original presentation, by Florida Inland Navigation District commissioner and fishing boat captain Paul Dritenbas and Toby Jarman of the Vero Beach Power Squadron, revealed that oysters are a keystone species, supporting the entire ecosystem into which they are introduced through their ability to efficiently filter and clarify water.
A single oyster is able to filter 50 gallons of water a day, which allows sunlight to reach the lagoon bottom so sea grass can grow, thus allowing the rest of the food chain to prosper. Dritenbas and Jarman’s Rotary Club oyster mat projects have already resulted in robust regrowth of dwindling sea grass in some areas.
The mats employ vertically positioned oyster shells to catch fertilized oyster eggs floating through the water, and ultimately grow new oyster beds.
Putting the mats together is labor intensive and requires a well-crafted plan, but is very inexpensive, and allows participation from community volunteers – both adults and children. Volunteers fasten oyster shells to 16-inch-by-16-inch plastic mats that are assembled into larger segments – much like a patchwork quilt – then stored until the time is right to place them in the lagoon near existing oyster beds.
Jarman emphasized that, to be effective, the project must be long-term, and a strategy must be developed which includes public education. Success – thriving new oyster beds – depends on installing the mats at the right time of year and in the right locations in the lagoon.
The City Council was enthusiastic about the idea after the presentation and then-Mayor Bob McPartlan said he’d like to see Sebastian undertake an oyster mat project of its own. At its December meeting, the Natural Resources board provided an update.
The board is currently seeking sources of shells, preferably already “weathered.” Fresh shells require about three months in the elements before they can be utilized for mats.
Board member George Millar is in communication with a seafood house in Melbourne as a possible source. Board member Bob Progulske has been in touch with permitting agencies, and reported the Army Corps of Engineers might not require a permit, unless the mats are to be placed in proximity to a navigational channel or sea grass beds. Permits might also be required from the Department of Environmental Protection and the St. John’s River Water Management District.
The project will benefit from the participation of John Giordano, a 14-year-old 8th grader at Sebastian Charter Junior High School.
Giordano holds the rank of Life Scout in Boy Scout Troop 500 and he has taken on the Oyster Bed Restoration Project in his quest to become an Eagle Scout. He already has firsthand experience working on an oyster mat project at school with his science teacher.
“I thought it would benefit the environment and it will involve a lot of leadership,” Giordano says. He made a presentation at the Natural Resource Board’s December meeting and will appear before the Sebastian City Council in January to seek support for the project.
Board Vice-Chair Capt. Gil Gordian and Giordano plan to go out into the lagoon as soon as weather permits, to chart GPS coordinates for potential mat locations.
The plan is to start with 200 mats, then, perhaps increase to 300 or 400, and go forward from there.
