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Check out this ambitious project to restore Charlotte Harbor. Barry Hurt is calling his initiative "A Billion Clams" or ABC for short. The initiative aims to use local clam farmers to restore native beds and establish commercial and recreational harvest exclusion zones. The intent of the project is to mitigate the effects of red tide blooms throughout the region. ... See more

For a Healthier Charlotte Harbor

"Aquaculture benefits can sometimes mitigate and even outweigh negative impacts, which is important to bear in mind as we face the global challenge of providing food sustainably to a growing population."

Dr. Chris Gillies, Marine Manager, TNC Australia ... See more

Oysters are the environmental engineers of our bays. Bringing them back through aquacultrure not only provides an abundant high protein food, but also helps the environment and so many other species. Bottom line. Eat more Oysters! OysterMom ... See more

Another day, another article describing the dire situation for oysters on our gulf coasts. Aquaculture presents an opportunity to supplement the wild harvest fishery.

Efforts are underway to revive Florida's oyster industry. But some worry it might not be enough.

Here is to wishing all of our growers a speedy recovery. We can come back from this!

"Are we going to dump some more money back out here and keep moving forward or just call it quits, go back to welding?” asked one oyster farmer.

Aside from the direct impacts to Panhandle growers, Hurricane Michael has closed the lab in Apalachicola that conducts water quality testing. With the labs closed, no tests can be run and without lab results, shellfish production stops. These are some of the less than obvious consequences of these natural disasters. We wish for a speedy recovery to our fellow Floridians and growers alike. ... See more

Lab that tests for safety shut down by storm, disrupting aquaculture

The private sector can play a large role in saving Florida's aquatic habitats.

A Pensacola oyster farmer believes private enterprise must rise to meet our ecological challenges.

It is unfortunate that there are individuals out there that are stealing from farmers. This is the world we live in!

Despite the best efforts of oyster farmers and aquaculture enthusiasts, the younger oyster beds of the Chesapeake Bay are being chipped away at, bit-by-bit. Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) patrol the Bay and its rivers on the lookout for oyster poachers. “People come in and steal oysters i... ... See more

Now if I could only get the Division of Aquaculture to award me a lease to grow half a million oysters in Lower Tampa Bay.....

Manatee County leaders are seeking ways to combat the effects of red tide on area beaches, including a project to help clean the algae using shellfish.

More oysters along our coasts would provide a better mechanism to sequester nutrients.

Oyster and clam restoration efforts could be the key to keeping red tide out of some of Manatee County waterways.

Now the task for Florida is to prove how an increased freshwater flow would help the bay bounce back. It hardly guarantees the state a remedy, but it may mark a shift in how lawyers approach water cases as growing populations and climate change heighten competition for an increasingly scarce resource. ... See more

The Supreme Court seemed to suggest ecology is an important factor in state “water wars.”

It isn't over yet but today's Supreme Court ruling to send the case back to the Special Master, whom initially ruled in Georgia's favor, is a huge win for Florida.

In a dispute that’s been going on for nearly 30 years, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 Wednesday to kick the decision on the Florida-Georgia-Alabama water wars case back to a special master who hear

“There’s a big push from the state level to support the aquaculture more than the wild caught oyster" - Joseph "Smokey" Parrish, Franklin County Commissioner

That would be because: 1. Wild harvested oysters have collapsed and 2. Aquacultured oysters are thriving. Smokey Parrish worked in seafood processing in the past. Is this just more of the same old dirty politicking to protect his own interests? We think so! ... See more

Franklin County commissioners Tuesday morning sent an unmistakable message to state leaders that they have serious reservations about the growing

Empire Oyster is teaming up with 3 Daughters Brewing for the Sunshine City Oyster Social. The event is June 30th in Saint Petersburg. Buy your tickets now!

https://www.empireoyster.com/eventsmain/sunshinecityoystersocial ... See more

Despite the repeated warnings from mother nature and regulators, Apalachicola oystermen continue to deplete what little wild resource is left. FWC is issuing undersized oyster violation tickets at a steady clip, often finding not a few, but nearly a full bag of oysters all under the three-inch length limit.

“Certain ones are going to steal whatever they can find, they don’t care".

- Shannon Hartsfield, President of the Franklin County Seafood Works Association. ... See more

The Apalachicola Bay’s summer oyster harvest got started last week, and the 40 or so watermen willing to brave slim pickings on hot mornings have a

"More farms have been launched in the past few years than ever before. People are becoming increasingly aware of the environmental and entrepreneurial benefits that aquaculture offers."

-Natalie Clark, Hoopers Island Oysters ... See more

Natalie Clark, nursery manager at Hoopers Island Oyster Co in Maryland, explains how plans to reseed the Chesapeake Bay with 10 billion bivalves have not only given her a dream career, but can also he

Georgia has acknowledged that they are behind the other states when it comes to aquaculture, lacking regulations and a framework to allow for off-bottom culture. Virginia has grown oyster aquaculture from a $200,000/year industry to more than $30-million in a mere decade. I'm proud of our state for following suit, putting Florida among the leaders in the southeast. ... See more

We hate to see Coastal Georgia missing out on an industry that could potentially provide jobs and a steady supply of tasty bites to eat in restaurants everywhere.

Do we have any followers that are graduates of the WEI Oyster Aquaculture program?

Oysters along the Forgotten Coast have been slowly dying since the 80's. A group of local ranchers is turning the tide with an aquaculture program.

North Carolina is considering a bill that would remove the residency requirement and allow individuals/companies up to 300 acres of water column/bottom leases, shifting the aquaculture industry in the state from a small business venture toward an industrial multi-national operation. What are your thoughts James Hargrove? ... See more

Proposed changes include removing the residency requirement and allowing individuals or companies to own up to a total of 300 acres in water column/bottom leases. Now, individual leases can range f…