🔵 Oysters in the Mullica River need to be bolstered

🔵 Atlantic City restaurants are recycling their shells to help

🔵 Oysters offer many environmental benefits


Eleven restaurants in the Atlantic City area have been giving their leftover shells from diners to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Marine Resources Administration so they can be used to help bolster the oyster reef population.

Oysters need a hard substrate to attach to so they can grow. Oysters build on top of each other, creating a reef effect, said Scott Stueber, a senior fisheries biologist at the NJ Fish and Wildlife’s Marine Resources Administration.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
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This program aims to collect discarded clam and oyster shells from restaurants in Atlantic City, and soon, from the remainder of Atlantic and Cape Counties, and then use those shells to provide that substrate that the oyster needs, Stueber said.

Shell recycling helps provide the substrate while keeping waste out of landfills and saving restaurants money on waste hauling charges.

The shell recycling program began in 2019 with only one restaurant involved and that was the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City. It has now expanded to 11 restaurants in the county that partnered up for the program, Stueber said.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
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They include The Borgata Hotel and Casino, Resorts Casino and Hotel, Dock’s Oyster House, Golden Nugget, Knife and Fork Inn, Tropicana, Harrah’s, Boca in Margate, Barbara’s Seafood, Dougherty’s Steakhouse and Raw Bar, and Deauville Inn.

Just under 100 tons of recycled shells were collected in 2023, Stueber said, and more than 100 tons are expected to be collected from participating restaurants in 2024.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
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Once the shells are collected, they must sit for six months to make sure the shells are clean enough to go back into the environment, he said.

From that point, the shells get loaded up onto a barge and brought to the Mullica Hill oyster reefs. They are then deployed using a series of water cannons to evenly distribute the shells at the site, Stueber explained.

When the shells are planted in the Mullica River, the existing oysters in the population will spawn and the sperm and egg will meet in the water column and then it will be a free-swimming larvae stage.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
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The larvae are looking for hard substrate and calcium carbonate, so they are looking for the shells. The larvae will then grow into adult oysters, Stueber explained.

“We’re focusing in on the Mullica River oyster reefs right now because on the Atlantic coast of New Jersey, they are one of the last remaining self-sustaining oyster reefs that are around. So, unlike Delaware Bay which has a robust oyster population, the Atlantic coast has little pockets,” Stueber said.

Bolstering oyster reefs in New Jersey waters is so important because oysters offer so many environmental benefits.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
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Not only do they provide critical habitat for different fish species, but because of the reef-building effect, Stueber said they are a nursery ground for many of the fish species. Juvenile fish will use them as refuge.

Oysters also filter our waters, and keep them cleaner. They also help stabilize sediments.

“To date, we have planted over 350 tons of shells on the Mullica River oyster reefs. This year, we’ll be planting more shells. So, this year, we planted just over 10,000 bushels of shell, whereas next year we’re on pace to begin planting 25,000 bushels of shell, which is the equivalent of about 700 tons,” Stueber said.

Staff officials collect shells weekly from restaurant partners with a focus on Atlantic City.

Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)
Shell Recycling Program (NJDEP)NJ
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The shell recycling program is centered in Atlantic City but was recently awarded a three-year grant award of $1.27 million from NOAA's Coast Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Competition, Stueber said.

Expansion plans include the addition of restaurant partners in Atlantic and Cape May counties, and public drop-off locations, the planting of 700 tons of shell annually on the Mullica River oyster reefs, and the development and implementation of a marine science education program in Atlantic City schools.

"So, working with educators and students to provide experiential learning opportunities to kids at an early age. We’re really excited to get that off the ground,” Stueber said.

To learn more about the shell recycling program, visit here.

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