Oysters in BL

[MathGeek]

Originally Posted by B-Stealth

Pop quiz.

Can anyone tell me what organizations have funded the construction of artificial reefs in the Calcasieu estuary?

10 times the money used to construct artifical reefs in Louisiana has been used by this organization to construct living oyster reefs in Galveston Bay.

Anyone who has spent time fishing the Calcasieu estuary knows that there already a lot of hard substrate (jetties, rocks, pilings, weirs, industrial fixtures, etc.)

Dumping more rocks is of far less benefit that restoring living oyster reefs that provide a wealth of ecosystem services including: filtering of water for increased light penetration and primary production, buffering of anthropogenic inputs, improving water quality, increasing benthopelagic coupling, improved benthic biodiversity, improved habitat for epibenthic invertebrates, carbon sequestration, and augmented fish production.

Of course, CCA is aware that oyster reefs are far more beneficial to an ecosystem than non-living material, which is why TX gets the oyster reefs, and LA gets rock dumps.

[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by MathGeek

10 times the money used to construct artifical reefs in Louisiana has been used by this organization to construct living oyster reefs in Galveston Bay.

Anyone who has spent time fishing the Calcasieu estuary knows that there already a lot of hard substrate (jetties, rocks, pilings, weirs, industrial fixtures, etc.)

Dumping more rocks is of far less benefit that restoring living oyster reefs that provide a wealth of ecosystem services including: filtering of water for increased light penetration and primary production, buffering of anthropogenic inputs, improving water quality, increasing benthopelagic coupling, improved benthic biodiversity, improved habitat for epibenthic invertebrates, carbon sequestration, and augmented fish production.

Of course, CCA is aware that oyster reefs are far more beneficial to an ecosystem than non-living material, which is why TX gets the oyster reefs, and LA gets rock dumps.

Carbon sequestration? Like the Al Gore global warming stuff?

[MathGeek]

Originally Posted by DaPointIsDaBomb

Carbon sequestration? Like the Al Gore global warming stuff?

Yeah, carbon sequestration is not a benefit that would have crossed my mind, but it gets mentioned as a benefit in most of the oyster restoration papers. And the idea is scientifically sound: oysters transfer carbon to their shells when they grow and the carbon is locked up in the shells for a long time before being released.

I don't buy that atmospheric carbon dioxide is a big problem, so I do not see carbon sequestration as a big benefit. But lots of environmental types do, and as long as we're advocating oyster reef restoration, why not include benefits that lots of environmental types think are very important?

[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by MathGeek

Yeah, carbon sequestration is not a benefit that would have crossed my mind, but it gets mentioned as a benefit in most of the oyster restoration papers. And the idea is scientifically sound: oysters transfer carbon to their shells when they grow and the carbon is locked up in the shells for a long time before being released.

I don't buy that atmospheric carbon dioxide is a big problem, so I do not see carbon sequestration as a big benefit. But lots of environmental types do, and as long as we're advocating oyster reef restoration, why not include benefits that lots of environmental types think are very important?

I gotcha. U just copied and pasted some of the known oyster benefits. Carbon sequestration or whatever is a crock. My neighbor is a big liberal and talks about this all the time

[Smalls]

Originally Posted by DaPointIsDaBomb

I gotcha. U just copied and pasted some of the known oyster benefits. Carbon sequestration or whatever is a crock. My neighbor is a big liberal and talks about this all the time

Its a crock that a lot of people put a lot of money into, especially those environmental types MG mentioned. Money is what gets things done unfortunately. If there isn't money in it or some major benefit to society, most people couldn't care less.

[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by Smalls

Its a crock that a lot of people put a lot of money into, especially those environmental types MG mentioned. Money is what gets things done unfortunately. If there isn't money in it or some major benefit to society, most people couldn't care less.

I know. My neighbor says that's why ducks don't come here no more but I've been killing plenty ducks last few years But anyways how does an oyster hold carbon. Thought that was plants that did that. Are oysters plants?