Great South Bay Oyster Project

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Habitat Restoration

Oyster Project Logo - Great South Bay

Habitat Restoration

Oysters eat murky water for lunch. If we bring them back in volume, they’ll clean the bay better and faster than any human can.

We advocate for healing the creeks that feed our bay, for bay-friendly yards, for helping to return a shellfishing industry to the Great South Bay, and for the deployment of modern wastewater treatment technologies to address the problems caused by 500,000 cesspools and septic tanks, as well as the 197 large scale septic systems in malls, apartment complexes and locally.

Volunteer 

Lend a hand! Join our Oyster Project Team and help revive The Great South Bay.

Partnering With Oyster Growers

Save The Great South Bay works closely with oyster growers on The South Shore. We seek to implement new techniques for the reintroduction of oysters such as we see being undertaken in The Chesapeake, or through New York City’s Billion Oyster Project, or closer to home, with Friends of Bellport Bay. Given the value of oysters today, there is also a lot of innovation around how best to grow them.

Of course, nothing happens without cleaner water. That is why getting rid of our cesspools and septic tanks, healing our creeks, tackling runoff, and practicing natural lawn care is so important.

Please contact us with any suggestions you may have. You can also donate our efforts. We want to apply the latest techniques in aquaculture to revitalize our bay, our economy and our local culture.

We advocate for healing the creeks that feed our bay, for bay-friendly yards, for helping to return a shell fishing industry to the Great South Bay, and for the deployment of modern wastewater treatment technologies to address the problems caused by 500,000 cesspools and septic tanks, as well as the 197 large scale septic systems in malls, apartment complexes and locally.

The Making Of An Oyster Sanctuary

Part One Of Three
Site Evaluation
Part Two Of Three
Establishing the Sanctuary
Part Three Of Three
Enhancing and Measuring for Success
Recent planting in the Great South Bay Oyster Sanctuary 07/2023

Recent Progress On Habitat Restoration

Here’s what we’ve recently been up to. Your participation could look like one of these updates, or – if you can’t dive in there and get dirty yourself, just support the project and we’ll find a way to do it. Everyone has a part in this shared cause.
State of the South Shore Bays 2023

State of the South Shore Bays 2023

On Friday, October 20th at Save The Great South Bay's quarterly Speaker Series, Dr. Christopher Gobler of Stony Brook University's School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences gave his 4th annual State of the Bay presentation, this year including all of the South Shore...

West Sayville Wetland Restoration

West Sayville Wetland Restoration

Below is an update from our colleagues at Suffolk County regarding the restoration work happening in the wetlands south of the West Sayville Golf Course. The West Sayville wetland restoration project is part of our National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Sandy...

Bay Friendly Yards: The Three Essential Elements

Bay Friendly Yards: The Three Essential Elements

Long Island invented the suburban lawn. Fields of green with ornamental bushes brought in from all over the world.  All manner of care was required -- watering, fertilizing, pesticides -- so that these exotics and plants from other climates could survive here.  But...

Bay Friendly Yard Tip #7: Addition by Subtraction

Bay Friendly Yard Tip #7: Addition by Subtraction

Invasive plants are taking over Long Island. Not only do they not support local wildlife, but they also “choke out” our necessary native flora. As invasive species are allowed to spread, our biodiversity takes a toll. Climbing plants such as wisteria and English ivy...

An Innovative Approach to Restoring Eelgrass

An Innovative Approach to Restoring Eelgrass

Eelgrass is an essential component of the Great South Bay's ecosystem. Over the past decades it has been decimated due in part to Harmful Algal Blooms triggered by nitrogen pollution. Native Long Islander, Robert Vasiluth, has created a new methodology for restoring...

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