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WELLFLEET, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) – Organizers and participants collected more than 25,000 pounds of oyster shells in the inaugural season of a shellfish recycling program.
During the summer of 2021, the Massachusetts Oyster Project (MOP) worked with the town of Wellfleet and 8 participating restaurants to run a pilot oyster shell recycling program.
Staff and volunteers collected shells four times a week in special containers and brought them to the Wellfleet town transfer station. The program ended on Labor Day weekend.
“Our summer shell recycling program in the Town of Wellfleet was a resounding success,” the organization said. “With the success of this year’s program, we’re looking ahead to growth in 2022.”
The non-profit works to strengthen coastal environments by restoring native shellfish populations, improving water quality, increasing sea life diversity and mitigating the effects of climate change.
While MOP has a number of programs in towns throughout the Cape, they say the purpose of the Wellfleet project specifically was to create a favorable environment for reef development.
“Oyster shell is the best base for growing oysters,” they wrote on their website. “Oyster naturally grow in reef formation, so baby oysters want to latch on to other oysters to make their home.”
Towns, restaurants, organizations and volunteers interested in participating in next year's project can fill out a form on the organization's shell recycling program page.
WBZ’s Rob Woodard has the story:
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