Shellfish restoration – major event

Shellfish reefs (oysters, mussels etc.) are ‘the lungs’ of healthy estuaries, providing various ‘ecosystem services’ including water filtering, shoreline stabilisation and food and shelter for fish and crabs.

Member Dr Ben Diggles has been a prime mover behind the pioneering Restore Pumicestone Passage project. This project, now in its experimental stage, aims to rejuvenate the habitat – and the fishing! – in Pumicestone Passage, where less than 5% of historical shellfish populations remain , mainly because of declining water quality which disrupts their breeding cycle.

Dr Diggles is also a leader in the Australian Shellfish Reef Restoration Network which is co-sponsoring the 19th International Conference on Shellfish Restoration on 4-6 December 2017 at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. Shellfish restoration experts, resource managers, shellfish growers, community groups, NGOs and others are invited to attend the joint conference.

A call for abstracts and further information will be updated regularly on the Shellfish Reef Restoration Website. To stay up to date with the latest conference details and restoration news join the Network mailing list.

A news item about the project’s oyster shell recycling centre at Ningi appeared on the ABC news on 13 July.