In The News
The Oyster Recovery Partnership is working to fulfill its mission to restore the ecological and economic benefits of oysters to the Chesapeake Bay. Read how our funders, our employees, the watermen, enviromental groups, volunteers, elected officials, and the general public are working together to strengthen the effectiveness of Maryland's oyster recovery efforts and other partner activities.
Press Releases
and Media Coverage (ORP and Partners)
Fall 2010
Maryland Hospitality Magazine: Maryland’s First Oyster Shell Recycling Alliance
August 17, 2010
Capitol Hill Press Release: Mikulski, Cardin Announce Release of Federal Funds to Build Oyster Population in the Bay
August 17, 2010
Southern Maryland Online: Oyster Survival Rests on Choptank Hatchery Expansion
August 4, 2010
News 21: Hatchery Expansion on the Choptank Key to Oyster's Revival
August 2010
Maryland Life Magazine: How Maryland Residents Can Impact Their State
August 2, 2010
Baynet.com: NOAA Launches Smart Buoy at Gooses Reef
August 1, 2010
Blue Skies Events Blog: Oxfords and Oysters Event 9/18 Benefitting Oyster Recovery Partnership
August 1, 2010
i-Newswire: Long Point Oyster Growers Deliver Oysters to Severn River
July 29, 2010
Maryland Public Television: Oyster Project
July 9, 2010
Ocean City Today: Oyster Shell Recycling Program Expands into OC
July 6, 2010
WJZ-13 TV: New Report Shows Hope For Chesapeake Bay Oysters
July 6, 2010
WUSA-9 TV: Oysters Get Tough By Being Protected, Report Says
July 3, 2010
The Capital: State Oyster Hatchery Near Cambridge Expanding
July 2, 2010
Ocean City Dispatch: Gulf Spill, Economy Spark Seafood Concerns
June 28, 2010
Daily Time: Shell Recycling Program Pushed in OC
June 19, 2010
The Capital: Gardeners Plant Oysters on Sanctuary Reefs
June 13, 2010
Bay Weekly: How Many Oyster Does it Take to Restore the Bay?
June 9, 2010
Maryland Restaurant Association: Seafood from the Bay Seminar
May 17, 2010
USA Today: Crew Fish Our Lost Crab Pots to Save Trapped Wildlife
May 12, 2010
Southern Maryland Online: Commissioners Shell Out Money for Oyster Reseeding
May 7, 2010
Maryland and Partners Kick off the 2010 Oyster Planting Season
Baynet: Oyster Planting Season
Southern Maryland Online: Oyster Planting Season
The Fishing Wire: Oyster Planting Season
May 6, 2010
Bay Journal: Oyster Beds Get a Boost from Raw Bars, Caterers
May 4, 2010
Southern Maryland Online: Charles County Commissioners Approve ORP Grant for Oyster Seeding
April 29, 2010
Bay Weekly: Which Came First: The Oyster or the Shell
April 29, 2010
Zoo and Aquarium Visitor: ORP Board Member Keith Campbell Honored by Maryland Zoo
April 24, 2010
Maryland Public Television: Recycling on the Half Shell
April 21, 2010
Chesapeake Business Ledger: Kratovil Observes Oyster Cleaning Program
April 10, 2010
DelmarvaNow.com: Watermen Assist With Oyster Restoration
April 9, 2010
ABC-TV: Spring Cleaning to Help Oysters
Capital News Service: Kratovil Observes Oyster Cleaning Program
DelmarvaNow.com: Kratovil Observes Oyster Cleaning Program
April 8, 2010
Go Shuck an Oyster Blog: Sprint for Spat
March 25, 2010
Maryland’s First Oyster Shell Recycling Alliance Begins
The Baltimore Sun: Oyster Shell Recycling
BaltimoreSun.com: Oyster Shell Recycling
The Capital: Oyster Shell Recycling
The Associated Press: Oyster Shell Recycling
ABC-TV: Oyster Shell Recycling
WJZ-TV: Oyster Shell Recycling
WBAL-TV: Oyster Shell Recycling
WBAL.com: Oyster Shell Recycling
News 21: Oyster Shell Recycling
The Outdoor Wire: Oyster Shell Recycling
Chesapeake Bay News: Oyster Shell Recycling
Oceanaireben's Blog: Oyster Shell Recycling
Chestertown Spy: Oyster Shell Recycling
Fishing Forum: Oyster Shell Recycling
Southern Maryland Online: Oyster Shell Recycling
Frederick News Post: Oyster Shell Recycling
Daily Record: Oyster Shell Recycling
Fredericksburg.com: Oyster Shell Recycling
Eye on Annapolis: Oyster Shell Recycling
The Bay Beat: Oyster Shell Recycling
Chesapeake Business Ledger: Oyster Shell Recycling
March 10, 2010
DNR, Citizen Oyster Growers Coordinate Efforts
February-March, 2010
Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence: The American Oyster
March 5, 2010
The Nature Conservancy Sprint for Spat 5K Run
March 4, 2010
Hundreds of Watermen Collect Ghost Crab Pots
WTOP-Radio: Ghost Pots
WBOC-TV: Ghost Pots
WJZ-TV: Ghost Pots
Outdoornewsdaily.com: Ghost Pots
The Star Democrat: Ghost Pots
Southern Maryland Online: Ghost Pots
Baynet: Ghost Pots
San Francisco Examiner: Ghost Pots
October 8, 2009
Governor O'Malley Announces New Oyster Restoration Landmarks; State, Partners plant 750 million spat this year
September 14, 2009
Partnership Receives Chesapeake Bay Watershed Grant
August 30, 2009
Partnership Proud of Severn Award
August 11, 2009
DNR & ORP Collect First Batch of Citizen-Grown Oysters
February 24, 2009
DNR, ORP & Watermen Continue Oyster Bar Rehabilitation Work
February 12, 2009
Oyster Recovery Partnership Announces Educational and Environmental Initiatives -- Announcement Includes Major Exhibition with Maryland Science Center
November 21, 2008
DNR, ORP & Watermen Begin Work Rehabilitating Oyster Bars in Tangier Sound, Severn & Patuxent Rivers
October 23, 2008
Maryland Offers Environmental Restoration Work to Watermen
September 24, 2008
Governor O’Malley Announces New Citizen Oyster-Growing Program, Maryland Oyster Planting Record State and Partners Plant Nearly One-Half Billion Oysters in 2008
2009/2010 News Articles
What's Up Magazine: Women Who Make a Difference: OPR Board Member Karen Oertel
March 2, 2010
Southern Maryland News: Proposed Oyster Restoration and Aquaculture Development Plan
February 5, 2010
Southern Maryland News: Can They Still Make a Living Out There? The Growing Are of Growing Oysters
November 27, 2009
The Capital: Checking Up on Oysters
November 23, 2009
Southern Maryland News: The Bay's Natural Filters
November 20, 2009
CBF Magazine: Strength in Numbers
Fall 2009
The Capital: State Sets New Record for Oyster Restoration
October 12, 2009
Maryland has once again set a new record for oyster restoration in the Chesapeake Bay. Nearly 750 million baby oysters - called spat -were created in a hatchery and placed in the rivers that feed the bay. The count bested last year's record of 600 million.
The Capital: Our Bay: Oyster Gardening Gains Popularity
October 11, 2009
They're small and smelly and voracious eaters of yucky stuff in the water. And everyone agrees we need more of them in the Chesapeake Bay: oysters.
WBAL News: Oyster Cages Delivered To Marylanders
August 27, 2009
Scott Wykoff from WBAL news reports the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Oyster Recovery Partnership today delivered 250 oyster cages and spat to Marylanders along the Severn River.
The Capital: Severn River Homeowners Become Oyster Caretakers
August 27, 2009
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Oyster Recovery Partnership delivered 250 oyster cages and spat to citizens along the Severn River. Recipients are the newest in the State's Marylanders Grow Oysters program. The event was held at Smith's Marina in Crownsville.
ABC Channel 2 News: Oyster Program Expands to 11 More Rivers
August 27, 2009
The Oyster Recovery Partnership delivered 250 oyster cages to people who live along the Severn River in Anne Arundel County.
National Public Radio (WAMU): Marylanders Grow Oysters to Replenish Bay Stock
August 11, 2009
Stephanie Kaye reports that both watermen and volunteers turned out to help the Oyster Recovery Partnership and the Department of Natural Resources. They were out collecting the first batch of oysters raised by the "Marylanders Grow Oysters" program.
Associated Press: 1st Volunteer Grown MD Oysters Transplanted
August 11, 2009
WJZ Channel 13: First Volunteer-Grown Oyster Transplant Occurring in the Tred Avon River
August 11, 2009
Alex Demetrick reports on the roll out of the Marylanders Grow Oysters project in the Tred Avon, including the support of both Department of Natural Resources and Oyster Recovery Partnership volunteers.
Southern Maryland News: Program Turns Pork into Oysters - Bivalve Recovery Effort Considered Good Investment
August 12, 2009
Featuring the Oyster Recovery Partnership, Jesse Yeatman reports that oyster restoration programs turn pork into oysters and that the bivalve recovery effort is considered a good investment for the health of the Chesapeake Bay.
Star Democrat: Oysters Planted in Tred Avon River
August 12, 2009
Kristyn Ecochard reports that Talbot County's waterfront property owners who volunteered last year to tend oyster cages from their private piers saw the results of their efforts Tuesday as the oysters were collected and planted in a sanctuary in the Tred Avon River.
Baltimore Sun: Citizen-Raised Oysters Get 'Planted'
August 12, 2009
The Baltimore Sun's environmental blog, B'More Green, published an article about the Marylanders Grow Oysters program supported by the Oyster Recovery Partnership.
Washington Post: Environmental Groups Join in Raising Oysters
June 21, 2009
Christy Goodman interviews Stephan Abel, Executive Director of the Oyster Recovery Partnership, which provides transportation and other logistical support for the Marylanders Grow Oysters project. Abel said pier owners "are learning about the value oysters play" even as they contribute to large-scale reef rebuilding projects.
Star Democrat: New Oyster Cultivation Facility OK'd at Horn Point Laboratory
March 5, 2009
The Maryland Board of Public Works approved a contract Wednesday for the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science to move forward with the construction of a state-of-the-art oyster cultivation facility at the Horn Point Laboratory in Cambridge. The new facility will increase Horn Point's ability to produce oyster spat for Maryland's Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts. The oyster cultivation facility will rest on a 300-foot pier reaching into the Choptank River and will improve the efficiency of large-scale restoration efforts by allowing researchers to more easily move spat-laden oyster shell to barges destined for restoration sites. The construction of the facility will be managed by the Maryland Department of General Services and is expected to be completed in fall 2010.
The Capital: Severn Oysters Get Boost from Watermen
March 5, 2009
Watermen are working on an oyster restoration project in the Severn River. They've been hired by the state through a program aimed at helping both financially struggling watermen and the environment.
Maryland Gazette: Science Center to Focus on Bay
March 4, 2009
The Chesapeake Bay will be the subject of a new exhibit at the Maryland Science Center. The nonprofit Oyster Recovery Partnership and the science center are raising money for the exhibit, which is planned for the third floor of the science center in Baltimore. The exhibit is currently in the design stages and will have the theme, “It’s My Bay.”
The Capital: Our Bay: Bay Digest - Science Center to Focus on Bay
February 28, 2009
The Capital: Watermen Cleaning Severn Oyster Bars
February 26, 2009
Watermen are descending on the Severn River as part of an oyster-restoration project. Up to 30 boats have been working in the river for the state Department of Natural Resources and the Oyster Recovery Partnership.
2008 News Articles
The Economist: Gem of the Ocean
December 18, 2008
Although the Chesapeake region might be best known for its blue crabs, in fact oyster harvesting and processing formed the most commercially viable operation in the region as far back as the Civil War. And the waters teemed with oysters long before that: whenJohn Smith first sailed into the Chesapeake in 1608, he wrote that they “lay as thick as stones”—so profuse, in fact, that they made navigation difficult.
Star Democrat: EHS Students Help Grow Oysters
October 22, 2008
Students from Easton High School worked with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Oyster Recovery Partnership and local watermen to fill cages with young oysters and deliver them to Talbot County residents as part of...
Star Democrat: O'Malley Touts Oyster Growing; Governor Launches Program Encouraging Private Citizens to Grow Oysters
September 25, 2008
Hope and Anthony Harrington became the first to participate in Gov. Martin O'Malley's Marylanders Grow Oysters program Wednesday as they dropped four cages of baby oysters, or spat, into the Tred Avon from the pier at their home on...
Media Contact
Heather Epkins, Director, Communications & Partnerships
hepkins@oysterrecovery.org
Tel: 410.990.4970