In Wellfleet, Cape Cod, Mass., nurturing the ocean is on a par with feeding one’s family. In fact, the two are interconnected in this area, where communities depend upon sustainable fishing practices for both the survival of their livelihood and continued abundance of affordable seafood for home and restaurants.
Now in its tenth year, the annual Wellfleet OysterFest, celebrated in mid-October and initiated by the non-profit Wellfleet Shellfish Promotion and Tasting (SPAT) organization, kicks off a voluntary Shell Recycling Program for local commercial and recreational shellfish permit holders and restaurants. Pouring discarded oyster and clam shells (called cultch) into Wellfleet harbor builds habitats to which free-swimming wild oyster larvae, called spat, become attached and grow on. The more cultch is added to the harbor the greater the nursery habitats for future shellfish generations. In 2009, the Recycling Program collected and added to the habitat nearly three tons of shells. (For more information, contact Nancy Civetta)
Dina Eliash Robinson