Restoring oyster reefs: Alabama’s coastal revival

Reviewed by: Cindy Hatcher

Reading time: 1 minute

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Volunteers raking piles of oyster shells. (Anne Birch)

You might love them fried, grilled or raw, but did you know oysters provide important protection for our coastal habitat? 

Oyster reefs were once so plentiful in Mobile Bay that they reached 10 to 12 feet underwater, a height greater than a basketball goal.

“They were underwater hills along Mobile Bay,” described Judy Haner, Coastal Program Director for The Nature Conservancy in Alabama.

Despite their abundance, over the last century, Alabama’s oysters, which are also delicious and known as a renowned culinary delicacy, have dramatically disappeared in the wild.

Why did this happen, and what are Alabamians doing to bring coastal oysters back? 

We’ve been reporting on animals that are found only on Alabama’s coasts and bays that need our protection for survival. 

In this third story, we look at oysters–how we nearly lost them, the impact they have on the entire coastal ecosystem and important efforts to restore them.

Check out our story: Restoring oyster reefs: Alabama’s coastal revival

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Pat Byington
Pat Byington

Longtime conservationist. Former Executive Director at the Alabama Environmental Council and Wild South. Publisher of the Bama Environmental News for more than 18 years. Career highlights include playing an active role in the creation of Alabama's Forever Wild program, Little River Canyon National Preserve, Dugger Mountain Wilderness, preservation of special places throughout the East through the Wilderness Society and the strengthening (making more stringent) the state of Alabama's cancer risk and mercury standards.

Articles: 2768

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