Oysters Can Prevent Billions of Dollars in Flood Damage and Water Treatment

Due to years of oil, trash, chemicals, and other dirty substances being dumped, many rivers, bays, and other waterways around the world are now severely polluted. In turn, this destroys coral reefs and other underwater natural features that have a significant impact on the world above the waves.

The Billion Oyster Project recycles actual oyster and clam shells from restaurants and dumps them back into the water in an effort to rebuild New York's oyster reefs. This is because each little oyster naturally filters 50 liters of water per day, and New York once had oyster reefs covering over 200,000 acres. However, as they disappear, the water becomes more and more contaminated.

Additionally, the city is at a higher danger of floods. Natural barriers like reefs help prevent large storm surges from flooding metropolitan streets. And it affects all coastal regions, not just New York. Natural barriers like oyster reefs stop potential flood damage worth tens of billions of dollars. Oysters' built-in filtration capabilities can also aid in water treatment, which might reduce technological costs by billions more.