|
Restoring Our Oyster. Cleaning Our Bay. Preserving Our Future. |
|
|
Support Oyster Restoration
|
Don't forget to take advantage of 2011 tax benefits by donating to ORP now!  Like  Donate   Workplace Giving
|
|
Did You Know?
|
During the 2011 oyster planting season, the Oyster Recovery Partnership planted 533 million disease-free spat on shell oysters on over 321 acres on 13 bars in 6 tributaries and processed more than 70,000 bushels of shell. This is the fourth year over half a billion oysters have been produced by the University of Maryland's Horn Point Lab Oyster Hatchery in Cambridge, MD.  |
| Oyster News |
Perdue News Room//Perdue Volunteers Support ORP
Profish newsletter // Celebrity Snakehead Dinner to benefit ORP
The Star Democrat//Dine Out showcases Md. seafood
Zagat//Eat Seafood, Save Oysters
Christopher White Book Blog//Chesapeake Oyster Restoration Expanded
The Patch//Bites Nearby: Celebrating Maryland Seafood
Urbanite//From the Bay, For the Bay
NPR//Wild oysters get boost from area restaurants
The Baltimore Sun//Chesapeake renovations moving forward
The Washington Examiner// Help bay's oyster population - by eating them
Capital Cooking//From the Bay, For the Bay
The Baltimore Sun//OysterFest; the shucking competition
Meat & Poultry.com // Perdue employees lend a hand in grow oysters program
The Capital//After Dark: The boats are great, but don't forget the parties!
Scout Mob//Keepin' Our Local oyster Game Tight
Leesburg Today//From the Bay, For the Bay Dine Out, promotion MD Seafood
Odenton, Broadneck, Severna Park Patch//Celebrating MD Seafood
 Outdoors Delmarva: Neighborhood Spat
The Baltimore Sun//Scene & Heard at Oyster Ball
The Star Democrat //More than 500 million oysters planted in 4th straight year
Gadling.com(AOL Travel) // Falling in love with oysters
NPR//Old Ebbitt's Late Night Oyster Offering
The Baltimore Sun // Celebrity Snakehead Dinner to benefit Oyster Recovery Partnership
The Capital//Our Bay: Sink your teeth into...snakeheads
The Republic//Chefs to cook up toothy and invasive snakehead fish for fundraiser at Eastport Restaurant
CBS Baltimore // Snakeheads on the menu at Eastport Restaurant
ABC2 News//New menu item: snakehead
NBC 15 Madison, WI// Tuesday Morning Bizarre News Headlines
The Washington Post// Sourced: The dual-purpose bivalves of Dragon Creek
The Patch (Annapolis, Edgewater)//Celebrity Snakehead Dinner to Benefit Oyster Recovery Is Tonight
The Capital//Verdict on Snakeheads: Delicious
NPR//Snuffing Out Snakehead By Putting it on the Plate
McClatchy-Tribune Info Services Editorial // Snakehead Strategy: If you can't beat them, eat them
Tasting Table//Give 'Em Shell
Breaking Travel News//Four Seasons Baltimore: Newest Harbor East Restaurant Opens Its Doors
|
|
Remote Setting Tank Program Update
|
ORP Executive Director, Stephan Abel, spoke to the large crowd attending the 2011 MD Shellfish Aquaculture Conference in Annapolis this week to offer results from a Remote Setting Tank Program that occurred this past summer. Stephan shared the platform with several participant oyster growers who also spoke and counted this experiment as a success. Eric Wisner said, "It was like Christmas morning and the anticipation of unwrapping your first present. It was exciting to see my work flourish." Stephan revealed that from the 16 participants working on 20 separate oyster planting sets with approximately 218 million larvae, about 32 million spat on shell were successfully produced! Thanks to our restoration partners, including the Horn Point Lab Oyster Hatchery and particularly Steven Weschler and Alan Raoche, for helping make this program a viable method for supporting Maryland aquaculture. We look forward to more success in 2012.
|
| Meet Our Board Members |
 Charles Evans Jr.
Founder and Managing Member, Evans Land LLC
Member of the Board Development Subcommittee
Charlie is a Mid-Atlantic States Real Estate Developer, Asset Manager, Real Estate Deal Negotiator, Consultant, Private/Public Partnership Expert, and Real Estate Broker duly licensed in Maryland. With over 40 years of proven experience advising clients from across the country on the acquisition, development, disposition, restructuring and workout of commercial and mixed use real estate properties, Charlie has advised partners and clients nationally from Los Angeles to Colorado, Ohio to Georgia and Virginia to Massachusetts. Charlie says that, "Serving on the Board of ORP provides me with an opportunity to stay connected to bay restoration initiatives and help develop new and creative ways to improve water quality in the Chesapeake, while serving a great organization that is one of the "shining lights" of restoration for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed." Charlie joined the Board in 2008 and resides in Cambridge, MD.
|
|
|
Giving Thanks
 | |
ORP planting vessel Robert Lee planting oysters on the Patuxent River.
|
ORP and our partners are giving thanks for the newest baby oysters planted in the Bay (see Did You Know? at left for details), and for all the recycled s hell we've collected this year. Through our Shell Recycling Alliance, ORP has collected more than 10,000 bushels of shell in 2011 - 15% of our total annual needs. Since oyster shell is such a limited resource and a critical element in the State's oyster restoration efforts, it is urgent -- now more than ever -- to recycle every oyster shell we can. Under the Presidential Executive Order 13508 to restore 20 tributaries by 2025, our goal as a coalition of partners is to ramp up oyster restoration operations to produce and plant one to two billion spat on shell per year. This increase in production will require at least 200,000 bushels of aged and cleaned shell each year. |
| |
"From the Bay, For the Bay" press conference launch at Matchbox Restaurant, Washington, DC
|
Now that oyster season is in full swing, remember to visit a restaurant or bull & oyster roast that supports the Shell Recycling Alliance. Thanks to all of the participating restaurants in the inaugural From the Bay, For the Bay Restaurant Week -- and to those individuals who ate out. You are helping make a difference!
Join us at one of our upcoming events that benefit our friendly bivalve and our quest to help in its survival.
-- Stephan Abel, Executive Director, ORP
|
|
Are You an Oyster Insider?
ORP is preparing to host you at two immensely popular events...the 2nd Annual Old Ebbitt Grill Oyster Matinee in Washington DC on November 19th and the 2nd Annual Oxfords & Oysters Happy Hour in Baltimore on December 1.
Oxfords & Oysters promises spectacular views, fine food and dancing, all at the newest hotel in town - the Four Seasons!
 | |
Infinity pool at Four Seasons Hotel in Baltimore -- location of Oxfords & Oysters on December 1.
|
|
Shell Recycling Alliance Nears 100 Members! The Oyster Recovery Partnership's most publicly-recognized
program - the region's first oyster Shell Recycling Alliance, launched by the Partnership in 2010 -- is made up of nearly 100 restaurants, caterers and seafood distributors from the DC, Maryland and Virginia region, as well as citizen volunteers who collect donated used oyster shells from these businesses to aid in restoring the Chesapeake Bay.  | |
ORP's Shell Recycling Alliance provides 15% of Maryland's shell needs at current oyster production levels
|
Newest SRA members:
Crab Galley
Fins Fish House and Raw Bar
Grillfish, DC
The Hilton, McLean
The Hotel Monaco, Baltimore
Jackson 20
J&G Steakhouse at W Hotel
Johnny's Half Shell
McCormick & Schmick's, Tyson's
McCormick & Schmick's, Bethesda
Mon Ami Gambi
Morrison House
The Olney Grille
Salerno's
Smith & Wollensky
The Reef Restaurant
Tony and Joe's
|
Celebrity Chef Snakehead Dinner a Success
Thank you to Eastport's The Rockfish Restaurant and ProFish Ltd., a local seafood whole seller, for hosting the recent Celebrity Chef Snakehead Dinner to benefit ORP! On October 25th, over 100 Chesapeake restoration supporters and adventurous diners gathered to prove that the Snakehead fish doesn't have to be at the top of the Chesapeake Bay's food chain. Attendees enjoyed a 7-course meal featuring locally-caught Snakehead fish and other invasive species, such as the Blue Catfish. The event was a culinary opportunity to taste a destructive, predatory, invasive fish negatively impacting native fish species. More than 300 pounds of Snakehead was served and was provided as part of the Whackfactor Outdoors Potomac Snakehead Fishing Tournament. As part of the event, guests were educated about sustainable fishing, consumption, and invasive species by informative speakers including National Geographic Fellow, Barton Seaver, and Steve Vilnit with DNR's Commercial Fisheries Outreach Department. Profish generously donated proceeds from the event to the Oyster Recovery Partnership for future Bay restoration. Also, thanks to Flying Dog Brewery and Rappahannock River Oysters for providing beer and oysters for this celebrity event. |
Aw Shucks!
 ORP's Shell Recycling Alliance Manager, Bryan Gomes, and ORP partner and international award-winning oyster shucker, George Hastings, represented the Oyster Recovery Partnership at the 45th Annual St. Mary's Oyster Festival. George and Bryan educated the crowd about the ORP's Shell Recycling Alliance which collects recycled oyster shells from restaurants, caterers and seafood wholesalers in the Washington D.C., Baltimore, Annapolis, and Ocean City areas.
George was one of the original co-founders that resulted in the establishment of this popular initiative and placed 5th in this year's U.S. National Oyster Shucking Competition.
The contestant who shucks 24 oysters the fastest, wins...just being asked to compete at the national level is evidence of George Hasting's incredible shucking skills, so congratulations to our George -- you are always one fierce competitor and one of the best oyster advocates we know!
|
Out & About | |
Young oyster supporter bagging oysters.
|
Fall is a busy season for ORP Outreach. We have traveled across Maryland to educate the public about the importance of oysters in Bay restoration to such events as the Taste of the Kent Narrows, the St. Michael's Oyster Festival and presenting to various groups, such as the Bowie and Howard County Garden Clubs. A HUGE thanks to Ryleighs Oyster, a popular restaurant in Baltimore, MD for inviting ORP to judge their oyster shucking competition and for donating proceeds from their annual oyster festival!  ORP was invited by the Horn Point Lab (HPL) Oyster Hatchery in Cambridge, MD to provide a display and materials to help educate guests during their Open House on Saturday, October 8. Not only did guests of all ages enjoy the various activities offered, they also had an opportunity to learn about current Bay investigations, Horn Point Lab faculty-led global environmental research, and current restoration efforts to enhance the wellness of the Bay.
Thank you to the HPL Oyster Hatchery for being a crucial partner in Chesapeake Bay oyster restoration!
|
Ask a Scientist
 | |
Maryland Oyster Navy ship, the Governor McLane, was built in 1884. Photo credit: Calvert Marine Museum
|
Q: What were the Oyster Wars?
A: The Oyster Wars were a series of sometimes violent disputes between oyster pirates, the authorities, and legal watermen from Maryland and Virginia. These conflicts began in the 1860's after the U.S. Civil War. As a result of these wars, Maryland founded the Maryland Oyster Navy which was the predecessor of today's MD Natural Resource Police.
--Steven Allen, MSc, Sr. Manager, Aquatic Restoration Program, ORP
|
Partner Profile
Did you know License Plates help the Bay?
This year more than 75,000 Marylanders purchased a beautiful Treasure the Chesapeake license plate. Why did they do it? Because not only do Bay plates look
great on their car, but the money goes toward restoring the Chesapeake Bay.
Funds are received by the Chesapeake Bay Trust, a Maryland nonprofit that in turn grants these dollars to local organizations like Oyster Recovery Partnership for Bay restoration, education and community clean-ups. Want to do your part? It's simple and easy to buy a Bay plate online for only $20 at www.bayplate.org.
|
Oyster Trivia
 | |
Photo by Patty Hancock
|
When eating an oyster, which flavors can an oyster take on?
a. salty b. mineral c. mossy
d. smoky e. metallic f. all of the above
Read the next issue of The Bay Restorer to learn the answer!
Answer from last issue's question: Over 200 restaurants participated in From the Bay, For the Bay restaurant week.
|
Ingredients:
5 Oz. noodles, cooked
1 pint oysters, save liquid
4 ounces mushrooms
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 cup liquid from oysters
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Directions:
Cook noodles; drain and rinse in cold water. Heat butter; add flour; stir until smooth. Add liquid and cook until thick. Add shredded cheese and melt. Add noodles, oysters and mushrooms to sauce. Blend well and put in a 1 quart casserole. Top with buttered crumbs. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Read more at marylandmeals.com.
|
|
|
|
About the Oyster Recovery Partnership
|
Working with more than a dozen stakeholder groups to rehabilitate historic and relic oyster bars, the Oyster Recovery Partnership has planted more than 3 billion new oysters and rehabilitated more than 1,500 acres of once viable oyster reefs. Learn more.
Restoring Our Oyster. Cleaning Our Bay. Preserving Our Future. This is the mission of the Oyster Recovery Partnership (ORP) -- a 501(c)(3) non-profit based in Annapolis, MD. ORP actively promotes, supports and restores oysters for ecologic and economic purposes. We engage in numerous Chesapeake Bay-related projects by conducting science-based "in-the-water" and "on-the-land" recovery efforts, while conducting public outreach and education in our quest to protect our environment, our heritage, and our knowledge of the Chesapeake Bay, its marshes and rivers, and the life that it sustains.
A copy of our current financial statement is available upon request by contacting the Oyster Recovery Partnership, Inc. at 1805A Virginia Street, Annapolis, MD 21401 or 410.990.4970. Documents and information submitted to the State of Maryland under the Maryland Charitable Solicitations Act are available from the Office of the Secretary of State for the cost of copying and postage. Oyster Recovery Partnership, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization -- donations to which are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
|
|
|
|
|
|
