Successful installation of Oyster cultivation system: Nature restoration and aquaculture efforts go hand in hand.
The European oyster (Ostrea edulis) was once a dominant reef-forming species and an important habitat engineer within continental European waters. Unfortunately, the native oyster population deteriorated over the last 200 years, due to the mass extraction of the species, habitat destruction by intense fishing, as well as, the introduction of the Pacific oyster and its pathogens.
Today, the European oyster is considered functionally extinct within the German Bight and is unlikely to recover on its own.
For this reason, growth trials are being conducted within ULTFARMS, to explore the restoration and cultivation potential at the North Sea location (FINO3), as well as, the Belgian pilot site at Belwind
(See last post). This installation will provide valuable insights related to the growth parameters and overall feasibility at this specific, far offshore site and therefore, fuelling both, aquaculture and nature restoration efforts.
