2025: A Banner Year for Maryland Oyster Restoration
2025 marked a historic year for oyster production in Maryland. Preliminary results from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ annual fall survey, highlighted in Governor Moore’s press release earlier this week, documented unprecedented natural oyster reproduction, low levels of disease, high survival rates, and the greatest extent of healthy oyster habitat recorded in the survey’s 41-year history. Coupled with the milestone completion of restoration projects on an unprecedented scale across the state’s sanctuaries and public oyster grounds, these results reinforce the impact of sustained restoration efforts. The collective work of our partnership is making a difference.
What Comes Next…
Building on this momentum, ORP’s restoration programs are gearing up for an ambitious 2026. This year, our team aims to replenish harvested reefs with more than 150,000 bushels of substrate and advance pilot testing of alternative materials, such as recycled crushed concrete, to enhance oyster habitat. We also plan to produce and plant more than one billion oysters across sanctuary and public oyster grounds, helping to strengthen oyster populations and restore vital reef habitat.
In addition, we are launching the first oyster restoration project designed to quantify and generate nutrient reductions toward Chesapeake Bay water quality goals, in partnership with the State of Maryland and Queen Anne’s County. This project will be the first to implement oyster restoration best management practices approved by the EPA in 2023. If successful, this approach could unlock new opportunities for local jurisdictions to participate in oyster restoration, creating a new pathway for collaboration and impact.
Together, these efforts will help scale oyster restoration while supporting the long-term resilience of the Chesapeake Bay and its seafood economy.