{"id":13443,"date":"2021-04-27T11:48:10","date_gmt":"2021-04-27T15:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/news\/?p=13443"},"modified":"2023-12-04T11:09:45","modified_gmt":"2023-12-04T16:09:45","slug":"new-blueprint-for-nc-oyster-restoration-and-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/new-blueprint-for-nc-oyster-restoration-and-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"New Blueprint for NC Oyster Restoration and Protection"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, the North Carolina Coastal Federation released the North Carolina Oyster Blueprint for 2021-2025<\/a><\/em>, an action strategy created by more than 50 contributors across the state to advance restoration, protection and harvest of oysters. This is the fourth edition of the Blueprint, which was first issued in 2003.<\/p>\n

\"Click<\/a>
Click the image to read the full-length version of The Blueprint.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cOur ambitious vision for oysters in North Carolina builds on the Oyster Blueprint<\/em>\u2019s solid foundation of successes, and reflects that forward progress,\u201d said Todd Miller, executive director of the North Carolina Coastal Federation. \u201cI\u2019m especially proud of the commitment, cooperation, and creative thinking the many diverse contributors showed in creating this vital plan, even as COVID-19 added new challenges in the last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

North Carolina Sea Grant served as a key partner during development of the new Blueprint<\/i>, continuing the program’s long history of support and work aligned with past and present versions of blueprints.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

“Several North Carolina Sea Grant extension team members contributed to workgroups that devised the strategies,” says Frank L\u00f3pez, North Carolina Sea Grant’s extension director. Sea Grant also has funded a variety of research projects aligned with the blueprint goals.<\/p>\n

Restoring oysters is one of the most promising opportunities for coastal states, offering benefits for water quality, fish habitat and shoreline protection from storms. Restoring wild oyster populations can also increase the commercial oyster harvest and help oyster farmers who grow their own, contributing jobs and healthy, local food to the state.<\/p>\n

Wild oyster populations in North Carolina have declined over the last century due to historic over harvest and the subsequent impacts of poor water quality, natural disasters, predation, and disease, mirroring the global loss of an estimated 85 percent of oyster reefs. Although there is no current stock assessment for the wild oyster population in the state, the Division of Marine Fisheries views it as particularly vulnerable to overfishing.<\/p>\n

\"Click<\/a>
Click the image to read a strategic summary of The Blueprint.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Oyster Blueprint identifies specific goals for the state and key areas within it to achieve by 2025, including:<\/p>\n