Special Features:
Spotlight on Estuaries of National Significance

Barataria-Terrebonne Estuaries

- Compiled and written by Paul C. Focazio

Shellfish Challenge Initiative

One of coastal Louisiana's great attractions is the diversity and abundance of our natural resources, particularly seafood. Among the plethora of mouth-watering delicacies found along the coast, and possibly the local favorite, oysters abound in our shallow water bays. Oysters are harvested from both public and private waterbottoms and constitute a significant economic resource for Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico Coast Region. Nearly 1 million Louisiana oysters are consumed daily from an annual production of approximately 13 million pounds of oyster meat.

Oyster reefs are known as the cornerstone of the coastal ecosystem and provide feeding grounds, nursing grounds, and refuge to fish and other marine life. Oysters feed by filtering water and microscopic organisms from the surrounding waters that move over the reefs. A single oyster may move as much as 110 gallons per day of water through its shell cavity. Because of their feeding mechanism and their nonmotility, shellfish can accumulate bacterial, chemical, and naturally occurring toxins from the surrounding waters. The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals monitors the waters of coastal Louisiana through its Oyster Water Monitoring Program to ensure the quality of shellfish.

The Shellfish Challenge Initiative is an ecosystem restoration effort focusing on improving water quality and shellfish harvests within the Barataria and Terrebonne Basins. The Initiative highlights four priority projects meant to increase harvestable shellfish areas by 10%: (1) improving the use of marina pumpouts; (2) redirecting stormwater outfalls to adjacent marshes; (3) connecting poorly operating individual wastewater treatment systems to community-based systems; and (4) revising the shellfish relay.

For more information:
See the related "Focus Topic Fact Sheet" | PDF