Assemblyman Benedetto proposes oyster shell buyback bill
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BY ALEX MITCHELL
The ‘jewel of the sea’, oysters,
are in short supply in the
borough’s waters and it’s effecting
Long Island Sound’s
water quality, studies show.
Assemblyman Michael
Benedetto has proposed a bill
that would turn this marine
challenge into a ‘shell of its
former self’ on Friday, September
27.
Benedetto introduced legislation
that would establish
an oyster shell buyback program
which would reimburse
participating New York seafood
restaurants ten cents for
every pound of recycled shells
set aside for the program, maxing
out at $1,000 per business.
The recycled oyster and
clam shells would then be
placed back into shallow water
where they would constitute
a shell reef that oyster
larvae could adhere to and develop
into oyster clusters; as of
date, the empty shells end up
in landfi lls.
“Why waste what could
make a tremendous environmental
impact?” Benedetto
said.
By revitalizing oyster populations
our environment
will be equally improved, he
noted.
Oysters fi lter harmful nitrogen
from salt water, while
emitting oxygen and other
helpful agents that keep water
sources clean, which the
Bronx are struggling to handle.
“We have failing water
grades as it, is,” Benedetto
said, noting that his initiative
comes at no cost to participating
restaurants and that one
oyster fi lters 50 gallons of water
per day.
“One cubic foot of oysters
would fi lter 2,000 gallons of
water per day. Imagine what
they it could do to for the
Bronx shoreline,” Benedetto
said mentioning his interest
in expanding the program to
Throggs Neck in addition to
other sections of the borough
and the city.
“We are trying to encourage
marine life growth,” he
said during the press conference
set in a parking lot a few
feet from the City Island waterfront.
Benedetto announced that
he’s set aside a $2,000 NYS
grant to jumpstart the City Island
Oyster project.
Showing their support for
the legislation were representatives
of the City Island
Nautical Museum, restaurant
owners and Captain Mike
Carew of Mike’s Diving School
as well as the oyster project.
This project was inspired
by a larger bivalve initiative
in Manhattan called the Billion
Oyster Project, which follows
a similar buy back and
re-release procedure.
The micro level version
on City Island would create a
sea corridor for fi sh migration
that would bend around the
east Bronx shoreline headed
in the direction of Throggs
Neck.
“It would also help a great
deal with storm surge and
fl ooding,” said City Island
Civic Association vice president,
Barbara Dolensek.
She shared with the press
conference attendees that City
Island had a long rich history
of harvesting oysters in the
eightieth and 19th centuries,
explaining that collecting oysters
was once a primary trade
on the island.
“This program is just about
re-growing the population,
these oysters aren’t for consumption,”
she explained.
“Though, if things go according
to plan and the waters
do become cleaner, then we
could be harvesting our own
oysters for City Island way
down the road,” Dolensek continued.
The bill is expected to garner
bipartisanship in Albany
next session, Benedetto said.
He sees it passing through
with ease and getting approval
by May of next year.
Assemblyman Benedetto joins City Island restauranteurs and residents to announce the oyster buy back bill.
Schneps Media/ Alex Mitchell
/agewellnewyork.com