During an extensive discussion at their meeting on Monday, several East Hampton Town Trustees sharply questioned the wisdom of expanding what has been called an oyster restoration effort in Georgica Pond and constructing an oyster reef as scientists at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences have requested.
Michael Doall, the associate director for bivalve restoration and aquaculture, suggested expanding the oyster initiative in Georgica Pond and building a reef at the trustees’ meeting on January 27. The trustees postponed their decision until they could consult other pond users, such as baymen.
The Benefits of an Oyster Reef
Oyster seeds were installed in cages to protect against predation in three pond locations in 2019. Oyster spat-on-shell, also in cages, was deployed in 2021, and small “test oyster reefs” using shell bags containing spat-on-shell were installed in two sites in 2022. Mr. Doall cited a high survival rate, 40 to 50 percent, in advocating for an expansion of the program.
During the trustees’ meeting on March 24, Mr. Doall and Christopher Gobler from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences presented their insights. Gobler, who has been monitoring the water quality within the trustees’ jurisdiction for the past 11 years, supported the program’s continuation. They both emphasized that any expansion of the program would need trustee approval.
An oyster filters up to 50 gallons of water daily, contributing to robust reef communities and helping to reduce harmful algal blooms by removing excess nutrients from the water. The trustees have authorized pilot programs in their waterways where students, guided by South Fork Sea Farmers, the nonprofit educational branch of the town’s shellfish hatchery and community oyster garden program, have constructed oyster reefs.
Francis Bock’s Loss of Sleep
But “the Georgica oyster reef project keeps me awake at night,” Francis Bock, the trustees’ presiding officer, told his colleagues on Monday. Historically, “I, for the life of me, have never seen any reference to oysters in Georgica Pond, yet it’s being represented as a restoration project. Any permit should refer to ‘an introduction project,’ because that’s exactly what it is,” he said. “I think that if we’re going to go ahead with that, there’s going to have to be some pretty severe monitoring of the growth, where it’s going.”
“The pond is ‘a closed ecosystem,'” Mr. Bock continued, “and I don’t want to be a board that drastically changes that entire closed ecosystem. The unintended consequences, I think, could be quite severe.”
There was agreement among several trustees. “From the beginning, I’ve looked at this as somewhat vanity research projects,” Jim Grimes said. “We’re essentially raising oysters in this little closed environment.” The filter-feeding bivalves have “no measurable impact on the water quality in Georgica Pond,” he explained, adding that water quality has steadily improved since the introduction of the aquatic weed harvester. The biannual letting of the pond into the Atlantic Ocean “has had the biggest impact on water quality.”
“When I asked Dr. Gobler what were the objectives, he said it’s not a scientific experiment,” said Patrice Dalton.
“That said, why are we doing this?” Mr. Grimes asked.
Local Interest in the Reef
There is interest “by a constituency around the pond to utilize this tool to help improve water quality,” John Aldred said. Should the trustees approve an expansion of the program, “we have to state our concerns clearly, and make sure the monitoring plan that’s proposed addresses those concerns.”
In trustee records, Mr. Bock reiterated that he had seen no mention of oysters in Georgica Pond. “It’s concerning that we’re the ones who want to introduce it.” The pond is where oysters can thrive, so “why weren’t they there before? I don’t understand it.”
Mr. Bock was not suggesting the project be terminated but rather that it “proceed slowly,” likening it to the South Fork Wind farm’s export cable, for which the trustees granted an easement so the wind farm’s developers could bury it under the Wainscott beach under their jurisdiction.
“If it’s such a great environment for them,” he asked, “what’s going to prevent them from overtaking the pond?”
Christopher Carillo, the trustees’ attorney, suggested that clear guidelines should be established for decommissioning the project should it be deemed unsuccessful.
Mr. Aldred stated that the discussion was timely: “before there was a meeting between the baymen and Mike Doall and the trustees.”
“It’s considered ecological engineering,” Ms. Dalton said, “when you introduce something that’s never been there.”
