Katie Laakkonen on Oyster Restoration in Naples Bay
2.28.24 MAG Speaker Presentation
MAG President Tom Sabourin introduced speaker, Katie Laakkonen:
Katie Laakkonen is the Environmental Specialist for the City of Naples and has been with the Natural Resources Division for 18 years. Her work involves addressing a wide range of environmental issues within the City whether it be upland or aquatic related. Some key responsibilities focus on monitoring and improving the health of Naples Bay through implementation of programs such as water quality sampling, monitoring of seagrass beds, oyster restoration, and public education. Data generated from these programs help guide management decisions and project development and are also used by local, state, and federal agencies for rulemaking and management strategies.
One of the most challenging and rewarding projects Katie helped implement was the creation of over 40 artificial reefs offshore of Collier County, as seen in the documentary “Paradise Reef.”
Katie began her presentation by elaborating a bit on the “Paradise Reef’ documentary film (2106) to explain that the reef project was a joint effort between Collier County and the Cities of Naples and Marco Island along with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission & the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The artificial reefs provide a habitat for a wide variety of marine life and just like them, oysters reefs provide several benefits to the environment. She explained they have been doing it for a while but have ramped up their efforts in the last five years.
Oysters provide several benefits to the environment:
Why restore Oyster Reefs?
Naples Bay has lost 80% of its oyster reefs since the 1950s due to dredging for navigation and development projects.
A 2006 study found oyster reef habitat coverage had been reduced to only 12 acres, an 80% reduction in those five decades. Seagrass habitat also was found to have decreased by 91% to only 4 acres. The natural reefs are still declining, much of them have eroded away. At one time, there was an effort to rebuild the natural reefs, however, that effort did not get through the permitting process.
So, while Naples Bay cannot be restored to its former natural conditions, restoring oyster reefs is important to the bay’s health and function, as hundreds of species live in oyster reefs: from transient fish species that feed on residents to reef fish and more.
Hence, Natural Resources staff, in cooperation with other agencies and the community, are working to restore some of this vital habitat. Oyster reefs are being restored by providing hard substrate, such as shell-filled mesh bags and/or loose shell and rock, for juvenile oysters (spat) to attach to and grow. Over time, more and more juvenile oysters attach to these substrates as well as other oysters and a reef is formed.
Goals of restoring Oyster habitats:
There are 3 restoration areas (sites):
S-1: Windstar and Haldeman Creek, completed in 2019, this is the largest site. It has 23 new reefs and structures made of reef balls to calm the boat wake to make the water more conducive. Monitoring is done at 6,12, 24 & 36 months plus there is quantifying monthly recruitment plus a data site. At 6 months – 800 oysters, 12 mos. -1,516 (surpassed the natural reefs), 24 mos. – 1,366 and 36 mos. – 1,482.
S-2: Royal Harbor area, the site currently being worked on with completion expected by the end of March ’24, with 6 new reefs made of riprap around the outside and shells inside. Monitoring will begin 6 months after completion.
S-3: Rock Creek/Gordon River, the smallest site, a community site, completed in 2020. There was not as much recruitment there but that was anticipated. It’s slower to get off the ground but the goal is that they will become small mangrove islands with oysters growing together.
At the conclusion of the presentation, a Q&A period followed.
Katie Laakkonen is the Environmental Specialist for the City of Naples and has been with the Natural Resources Division for 18 years. Her work involves addressing a wide range of environmental issues within the City whether it be upland or aquatic related. Some key responsibilities focus on monitoring and improving the health of Naples Bay through implementation of programs such as water quality sampling, monitoring of seagrass beds, oyster restoration, and public education. Data generated from these programs help guide management decisions and project development and are also used by local, state, and federal agencies for rulemaking and management strategies.
One of the most challenging and rewarding projects Katie helped implement was the creation of over 40 artificial reefs offshore of Collier County, as seen in the documentary “Paradise Reef.”
Katie began her presentation by elaborating a bit on the “Paradise Reef’ documentary film (2106) to explain that the reef project was a joint effort between Collier County and the Cities of Naples and Marco Island along with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission & the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The artificial reefs provide a habitat for a wide variety of marine life and just like them, oysters reefs provide several benefits to the environment. She explained they have been doing it for a while but have ramped up their efforts in the last five years.
Oysters provide several benefits to the environment:
- Improve water quality by naturally filtering the water as they feed.
- Essential habitat for hundreds of organisms including commercial fish species (especially juveniles) and crabs.
- Oyster reefs are utilized by fish, crustaceans, birds, and mammals.
- They protect the shoreline from storm surges, erosion, and boat wake.
- Oysters are indicators for overall health of the bay.
- Oyster reefs supplement and protect the adjacent mangrove habitat as nurseries for fish species.
Why restore Oyster Reefs?
Naples Bay has lost 80% of its oyster reefs since the 1950s due to dredging for navigation and development projects.
A 2006 study found oyster reef habitat coverage had been reduced to only 12 acres, an 80% reduction in those five decades. Seagrass habitat also was found to have decreased by 91% to only 4 acres. The natural reefs are still declining, much of them have eroded away. At one time, there was an effort to rebuild the natural reefs, however, that effort did not get through the permitting process.
So, while Naples Bay cannot be restored to its former natural conditions, restoring oyster reefs is important to the bay’s health and function, as hundreds of species live in oyster reefs: from transient fish species that feed on residents to reef fish and more.
Hence, Natural Resources staff, in cooperation with other agencies and the community, are working to restore some of this vital habitat. Oyster reefs are being restored by providing hard substrate, such as shell-filled mesh bags and/or loose shell and rock, for juvenile oysters (spat) to attach to and grow. Over time, more and more juvenile oysters attach to these substrates as well as other oysters and a reef is formed.
Goals of restoring Oyster habitats:
- Filter feeds - Oysters feed by filtering and eating particles in the water column.
- Filtering improves water quality and clarity and allows light into the water column to enable the growth of submerged vegetation.
- Enhance invertebrate, fish & bird habitat.
- Increase seagrass habitat through improved water quality and protection from wave energy.
- To supplement and protect the adjacent mangrove habitat as nurseries for fish species, ultimately increasing fisheries because baby oysters (recruits) are magnets for mangrove islands.
- To stabilize shorelines from erosion
There are 3 restoration areas (sites):
S-1: Windstar and Haldeman Creek, completed in 2019, this is the largest site. It has 23 new reefs and structures made of reef balls to calm the boat wake to make the water more conducive. Monitoring is done at 6,12, 24 & 36 months plus there is quantifying monthly recruitment plus a data site. At 6 months – 800 oysters, 12 mos. -1,516 (surpassed the natural reefs), 24 mos. – 1,366 and 36 mos. – 1,482.
S-2: Royal Harbor area, the site currently being worked on with completion expected by the end of March ’24, with 6 new reefs made of riprap around the outside and shells inside. Monitoring will begin 6 months after completion.
S-3: Rock Creek/Gordon River, the smallest site, a community site, completed in 2020. There was not as much recruitment there but that was anticipated. It’s slower to get off the ground but the goal is that they will become small mangrove islands with oysters growing together.
At the conclusion of the presentation, a Q&A period followed.