Scientists say adding oyster reefs can

revive New York Harbor

By Eva Botkin-Kowacki, Christian Science Monitor, adapted by Newsela staff on 04.25.19
Word Count 734
Level 790L

Image 1. New York Harbor School students load cages full of oyster shells onto a barge for deployment in the Hudson River.
The Billion Oyster Project is re-establishing oyster reefs in the New York Harbor with the goal of revitalizing the waters. Photo
by: Billion Oyster Project

Today, most people in New York City are grossed out by the water in New York
Harbor. They wouldn't think of eating fish from it.

Some scientists, high school students and teachers are working to change that
idea. Their solution? Bringing in more oysters to the area.

New York City's waters were once clear. When Europeans first colonized the area,
seafood was abundant, especially oysters.

Oysters once were so plentiful that they were sold on street corners like hot dogs
are today. That all that changed, though. Too many creatures were fished. The
water got polluted. The oyster reefs disappeared and the harbor was seen as icky
by New Yorkers.

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Hopefully, oysters can change this.

Much Of The Pollution Comes From

Sewage

Pete Malinowski helps lead the Billion

Oyster Project. It aims to re-establish oyster
reefs in the harbor.

Oysters are more than just a popular dish.

Their reefs provide habitat for a variety of marine species. They break storm
water surges that could otherwise tear apart the coastline. Oysters also help clean
the water.

"You don't lose having oysters. You always gain," says Gulnihal Ozbay. She's a
researcher at Delaware State University who specializes in marine habitat
restoration.

Much of the pollution in the harbor today comes from sewage overflows. These
occur when heavy rains flood the city's combined sewage overflow system. This
spills wastewater into the harbor.

Sewage contains a lot of nitrogen. This is an essential nutrient for plants and
animals. But too much nitrogen causes blooms of algae. These suck oxygen out of
the water to create so-called dead zones.

The solution? Oysters, say Malinowski, Ozbay and others. As good filter-feeders,
oysters remove nitrogen and put it into their shells and tissue. Near oyster reefs,
the water is often clearer.

New York Students Are Breeding Oysters For The Project

Oysters weren't completely gone when the Billion Oyster Project began in 2014.
The ones that remained were rare, though.

That's important because oysters are broadcast spawners. This means they
release reproductive cells into water. These cells form baby oysters. These have to
find something to latch onto, and they prefer shells of adult oysters.

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In the Billion Oyster Project, those older shells come from restaurants in the city.
Students at the Urban Assembly New York Harbor School on Governors Island
breed oysters and raise them. Then, they plant entire chunks of oysters grown
together into the harbor.

The goal of the project is to have placed 1 billion oysters into the harbor by 2035.
They still probably won't be safe to eat: the project is focusing on restoring them
for the long term. And, Malinowski says, a billion oysters probably won't make a
huge dent in the harbor's pollution. This is largely because water moves fast
through the region. If the harbor water was standing still, he explains, 1 billion
oysters could filter it roughly every three days.

Instead, the Billion Oyster Project is using this effort to educate the next
generation of New Yorkers about the harbor. The hope is to spark interest in
restoring and protecting it.

John Waldman is a biologist, studying life forms at Queens College. He wrote the
book "Heartbeats in the Muck: The History, Sea Life, and Environment of New
York Harbor."

New York Harbor Starting To Make A Comeback

The "spirit" coming from kids and teachers is exciting, says Waldman, who is not
part of the project. "They are just so into this. It's marvelous to see."

Kaya Aras is a student at the Harbor School. He said the harbor had long been a
place to avoid. But after working on the project, he sees it differently. "Having
seen firsthand what the oysters do, I'm hopeful that one day the harbor will come
back to what it was," he says.

The harbor is already cleaner and livelier than some might think, says Waldman.
Just a few miles from downtown Manhattan, whales have reappeared recently.
Scans of the Hudson River last summer revealed a 14-foot-long sturgeon fish
swimming in its depths.

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Quiz

1 Which two choices are main ideas of the article?

1. Oysters can help filter and clean the water around them.
2. Large sea animals are beginning to return to areas of the New York
Harbor.
3. The Billion Oyster Project is working to restore the health of the New
York Harbor.
4. Heavy rains regularly cause the city's sewage to overflow into the
harbor.

(A) 1 and 2

(B) 3 and 4

(C) 1 and 3

(D) 2 and 4

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 4

2 Read the selection from the article.

The goal of the project is to have placed 1 billion oysters into the harbor
by 2035. They still probably won't be safe to eat: the project is focusing on
restoring them for the long term. And, Malinowski says, a billion oysters
probably won't make a huge dent in the harbor's pollution. This is largely
because water moves fast through the region. If the harbor water was
standing still, he explains, 1 billion oysters could filter it roughly every
three days.
Instead, the Billion Oyster Project is using this effort to educate the next
generation of New Yorkers about the harbor. The hope is to spark interest
in restoring and protecting it.

Which statement summarizes the selection?

(A) 1 billion oysters could clean the New York harbor water once every three days.

(B) Putting 1 billion oysters in the harbor won't completely clean the water but it
could make a difference.

(C) The project wants to eventually place more oysters in the harbor so that they
can end pollution.

(D) The water in the harbor moves so quickly that it's hard to completely clean it.

3 According to the article, how do oysters help to clean the water?

(A) They help create new reefs that stop pollution.

(B) They filter nitrogen and put it in their shells and tissue.

(C) They release reproductive cells into the water.

(D) They help dirty water move quickly out of the harbor.

4 What is the relationship between oyster shells and baby oysters?

(A) Baby oysters use oyster shells to attract ocean wildlife back to the area.

(B) Baby oysters cause oyster shells to filter out extra nitrogen from the water.

(C) Baby oysters use oyster shells to quickly clean polluted water.

(D) Baby oysters are formed when reproductive cells attach to oyster shells.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 5

Answer Key

1 Which two choices are main ideas of the article?

1. Oysters can help filter and clean the water around them.
2. Large sea animals are beginning to return to areas of the New York
Harbor.
3. The Billion Oyster Project is working to restore the health of the New
York Harbor.
4. Heavy rains regularly cause the city's sewage to overflow into the
harbor.

(A) 1 and 2

(B) 3 and 4

(C) 1 and 3

(D) 2 and 4

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 6

2 Read the selection from the article.

The goal of the project is to have placed 1 billion oysters into the harbor
by 2035. They still probably won't be safe to eat: the project is focusing on
restoring them for the long term. And, Malinowski says, a billion oysters
probably won't make a huge dent in the harbor's pollution. This is largely
because water moves fast through the region. If the harbor water was
standing still, he explains, 1 billion oysters could filter it roughly every
three days.
Instead, the Billion Oyster Project is using this effort to educate the next
generation of New Yorkers about the harbor. The hope is to spark interest
in restoring and protecting it.

Which statement summarizes the selection?

(A) 1 billion oysters could clean the New York harbor water once every three days.

(B) Putting 1 billion oysters in the harbor won't completely clean the water but
it could make a difference.

(C) The project wants to eventually place more oysters in the harbor so that they
can end pollution.

(D) The water in the harbor moves so quickly that it's hard to completely clean it.

3 According to the article, how do oysters help to clean the water?

(A) They help create new reefs that stop pollution.

(B) They filter nitrogen and put it in their shells and tissue.

(C) They release reproductive cells into the water.

(D) They help dirty water move quickly out of the harbor.

4 What is the relationship between oyster shells and baby oysters?

(A) Baby oysters use oyster shells to attract ocean wildlife back to the area.

(B) Baby oysters cause oyster shells to filter out extra nitrogen from the water.

(C) Baby oysters use oyster shells to quickly clean polluted water.

(D) Baby oysters are formed when reproductive cells attach to oyster shells.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 7