Shell Oil Donates $1 million to Fund Oyster Shell Recycling Program

Following is a press release from the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana.

June 24, 2014, New Orleans, LA – The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) kicked off the state’s first oyster shell recycling program this week with a press conference at the Bourbon House in New Orleans. The goal of the CRCL Oyster Shell Recycling Program is to recycle used oyster shell from participating New Orleans restaurants and use that shell to restore oyster reefs and shoreline habitat across coastal Louisiana. The CRCL Oyster Shell Recycling Program is made possible by a $1 million philanthropic gift from Shell.

“We are very excited to embark on this program, which will allow local restaurants and their patrons to play a part in helping preserve our coast,” said CRCL Restoration Director, Hilary Collis.  “Oyster shell is a naturally created and valuable material and by returning it to our coast it can serve as a foundation for oyster reefs and help protect our eroding shoreline.”

The CRCL Oyster Shell Program will reduce waste from restaurants while allowing participating restaurants to play an important role in sustaining oyster reef production in Louisiana.

CRCL is currently working with Acme Oyster House (New Orleans and Metairie locations), the Bourbon House, Redfish Grill, Peche Seafood, Felix’s Restaurant and Oyster Bar, and Luke, and hopes to expand the program to other restaurants as the program continues to grow.

“The main reason we want to be involved in recycling oyster shells is because we’re such a large user of the resource,” said Paul Rotner, Chief Operating Officer of Acme Oyster House. “It’s in our best interest. We need the shells in order to enrich the life span of our current oyster beds and to build new reefs. Oysters are a natural water filter; oyster reefs provide wildlife habitat, and coastal protection. We are extremely proud to be a partnering with the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and the Oyster Shell Recycling Program.”

CRCL contracted with the New Orleans-based recycling company, Phoenix Recycling, to facilitate shell collection and transport to a holding facility at the Buras Boat Harbor.  The recycled shell will be used to provide material for CRCL oyster reef restoration projects and a portion of the shell will be donated to the Louisiana-Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) for use in their management of the public oyster seed grounds and for “spat setting” research, which places larval oysters onto shell before it is deployed along the coast.

“The oyster recycling program creates a sustainable foundation that will continue to give back to the New Orleans community for years to come,” said Dwight Johnston, Shell Vice President of Health, Safety and Environment. “Responsible energy development to Shell means balancing our natural environment where we work, and this project allows us to develop new energy resources along the gulf coast while giving back to a state that has given us so much by strengthening and protecting Louisiana’s environment.”

Louisiana currently experiences a shell deficit – more shell is removed from Louisiana’s coast than is returned to help maintain oyster reefs.  To make up for the deficit, the LDWF uses crushed concrete and limestone to provide a hard substrate for oyster reefs.  The CRCL Oyster Shell Recycling Program will return at least 1,500 tons of shell to Louisiana’s coast each year.

“We are very grateful for Shell’s generosity and to all the participating restaurants for their leadership in getting the CRCL Oyster Shell Recycling Program off the ground,” said CRCL Executive Director, Kimberly Davis Reyher. “Preserving Louisiana’s coast is the cornerstone to protecting Louisiana’s future, and it is only by bringing together committed stakeholders like the ones participating in the shell recycling program, that restoration can be achieved.”