The Galway Bay Native Oyster Restoration Project is a community, state, and scientific institution led initiative that aims to restore the native oyster (Ostrea edulis) populations that once existed in huge quantities in Galway Bay. Our goals are to: restore native oyster habitats through strategic cultch deployment to promote larval settlement, identify distribution of critical habitat for native oyster including modelling of temperature and salinity, develop spatial management of fisheries that will include closed areas for oyster reef development, gain a more in-depth knowledge of native oyster habitat restoration through practical research, monitor prevalence of Bonamia, and improve coastal water quality in Galway Bay by fostering a community understanding that land based activities have immediate impacts on coastal water quality. All aspects of these goals are ongoing and we have successfully developed Native Oyster reefs in Galway Bay. The project is funded by EMFAF Marine Biodiversity & Marine Knowledge Scheme.

E-Mail: mofficer@cuanbeo.com
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