SAN ANTONIO – Oyster populations are at historic lows, but the South Texas Coastal Initiative sees a solution in San Antonio restaurants.
“We have 62 restaurants on our target list here in San Antonio,” STCI board member Ernest Brown said.
“It’s a big project y’all are taking on,” KSAT reporter Avery Everett said.
“It is, but it’s something that if we get it in place, we’ll be sustainable for hopefully ever,” Brown responded.
Oyster shells can be collected and placed in bays to rebuild reefs.
The Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi is leading the charge along the coast, but it’s through partnerships that they’re able to collect enough shells for rehabilitation.
“We need shells,” Pollack said. “That means lots of restaurant partners. We work with a lot of oyster farmers now in Texas who give us the shells as well. (We also work with) seafood festivals, like Fiesta Oyster Bake in San Antonio.”
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The majority of restaurants working with the institute are based out of Port Aransas, Corpus Christi and Rockport.
Chris Burge, one of the co-owners of Copano’s in Rockport, said signing on with the initiative was an easy decision.
“Oysters are part of our community,” Burge said. “We have to take care of our hometown.”
Copano’s collects oyster shells at the end of every night in a bin and then stores them on the side of their building. It’s the same process LATITUDE 28°02′ in Rockport uses as well.
“It’s really pretty easy for us to deal with the oysters,” co-owner Ramona Day said. “As the waiters and the bussers are scraping the dishes, they just throw the oysters in the bucket. It’s important to help with the recycling program.”
Brown is hoping that with the STCI, more San Antonio businesses will get on board.
“There’s more to oysters than just eating,” Brown said. “It’s not just for us, but my kids and my kids’ kids. The future of our bays depends on clean water and protecting shorelines.”
STCI is still in its early stages, but Brown is hoping to build a San Antonio oyster reef collection network soon.
“We want to have multiple initiatives operating underneath that umbrella,” Brown said. “It’ll all for the benefit of the bays and the people of Texas.”
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