Filtering the noise
How ordering oysters led me to discover an ongoing science battle between the National Park Service and Drake's Bay Oyster Company.
During an 8 mile hike around Drake's Bay in Point Reyes National Seashore, my friend explained to us that the structures out on the estuary were shellfish beds. We were looking at an oyster fishery that was producing 460,000 pounds of shucked oysters and 1 million Manila clams annually. I was impressed by the ability of the National Park Service (NPS) and private business to coexist with the ultimate goal of keeping the estuary clean. Shellfish are filter feeders and have been seen as a natural solution to improving water quality. According to a NY Times article, an adult oyster can filter between 5-50 gallons of water a day depending on its size and the temperature of the water. Oysters in the Chesapeake Bay used to be able to be able to filter the nutrients every four days (go here). Due to overharvesting, now it takes the population an entire year to filter the same area.
After the hike, we drove to Drake's Bay Oyster Company, the company that owns and harvests the oysters. My friends and I ordered fresh oysters pulled from the estuary that very day, seasoned them with some lime and hot sauce, and slid the slimy creatures down. While we were there, I saw a petition the company was filing to challenge the NPS' decision not to extend the oyster farm's lease in 2012. The NPS has claimed that the fishery is impacting the harbor seal population, causing increased sedimentation, and harming eel grass in the estuary.
Looking into the issue, I discovered that science was used to fight science. An independent council of scientists was convened to analyze and critique the data used by NPS in their claims. They found that NPS exaggerated the ecological impacts of the study (go here and here). Even Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) weighed in and expressed her disappointment over how the NPS spun the data.
It is unfortunate to see science being abused to further a policy agenda, but it also shows how science can be used to catch those abuses. In this case, a combination of simple statistics, a little help from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and some political connections can be a powerful tool. Despite this victory for the oyster farm, its fate is still undetermined and the fight goes on. If you have more interest in learning about the issue, visit here.
