Dredging oyster shells may be the best way to boost the Chesapeake Bay’s oyster population.
Beginning in June, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources wants to hydraulically dredge 260,000 cubic yards of fossilized oyster shells from three sites in the Bay.
The Maryland Department of the Environment and Army Corps of Engineers held a public hearing Monday to field concerns about dredging.
Chris Judy, shellfish program director at the Maryland Department of Natural Rescues, said oyster shells buried beneath the Bay’s floor need to be put back on top of the oceanfloor. This way, floating oyster larvae can attach to shells and produce more oysters.
DNR says dredging shells is the most effective way to boost oyster populations.
“The planting of shells is the best program for oysters,” Judy said.
DNR has dredged oysters in the Bay about four or five times since 1986.
Data from this year’s oyster harvest is still being compiled, but DNA spokesman Charles Gate said watermen reported catching a lot of oysters in “areas where we had put down oyster shell and seeded three years ago.” Gate said larvae that attach to oyster shells take about three years to reach full market size.
But some conservationists say dredging is the “most environmentally damaging way to restore” oyster populations.
Dredging is dangerous for the ecosystem of the Bay, said Larry Jennings, Greater Washington chapter president of the Coastal Conservation Association. He instead supports creating sanctuaries to increase oyster population.
“If we are going to restore oysters, we have to protect them from commercial harvest,” he said.
The mud and noise from dredging scares away fish from charter boats, creating a financial hardship for recreational fishermen.
“We have heard that charter boats have dropped out of business,” Jennings said.
In addition, dredging affects the entire ecosystem: growth and distribution of aquatic vegetation, smaller organisms, fish and small crabs.
DNR refutes claims that dredging is unsafe for the environment.
Judy said the environmental effect will be minimal since the DNR has already dredged this area.
“They’ve been reviewed by the agencies, and no lasting detrimental impacts” were determined, he said.
