In 2015, the "Green Team", a group of 20 West End Secondary School (WESS) students who advocate for environmental conservation and protection, were studying the ecosystem benefits of oysters in New York Harbor when they learned that reclaimed oyster shells from NYC restaurants play a crucial role in oyster restoration. One of the students, Jacqueline Lovci, decided to reach out to Billion Oyster Project to help.
Jacqueline and her classmates suggested drafting a legislative bill that would help restaurants - who already operate on such tight margins - obtain a small, but appreciated perk for putting in the extra work to help the environment.
The bill would award restaurants that donate shells to oyster reef restoration organizations a tax credit of 10 cents per pound of shell donated, capped at $1000.
Thanks to the efforts of the Green Team students, the bill garnered enough community support to catch the attention of WESS's district Assemblymember, Linda Rosenthal. Rosenthal agreed to sponsor the bill in the NYS Assembly in 2016 and remains the bill's lead sponsor today.
In the wild, young oysters — or spat — must settle on a hard surface to survive. Oyster, clam, and scallop shells provide that hard surface and are rich in calcium carbonate, making them the perfect substrate for oysters to settle on. Between 10 to 20 spat can settle on one reclaimed shell, and with millions of shells reintroduced to New York Harbor, one day we can reach one billion oysters. Oyster reefs provide habitat for hundreds of species, and can protect our city from storm damage — softening the blow of large waves, reducing flooding, and preventing erosion along the shorelines.
Thanks to the growing popularity of oysters, these shells are a plentiful local resource, as long as restaurants are willing and able to collect and donate them.
“Sorting and collecting oyster shells requires additional labor, usually from back-of-house staff, and we want restaurants to know that their efforts are acknowledged and appreciated,” said Charlotte Boesch, Billion Oyster Project Shell Collection Program Manager. “This bill would be a helpful gesture, especially for those restaurants that have continued donating oyster shells to Billion Oyster Project and others throughout the pandemic.”
The New York Alliance of Shell Collectors (NYASC), with member organizations in Long Island and New York City, are vocal advocates for the Bill. They hope the bill will incentivize more restaurants to donate to programs that use recycled oyster shells for restoration.
Over the past few years, the WESS Green Team has done their research. They toured Crave Fishbar, a Billion Oyster Project Shell Collection Program restaurant on the Upper West Side to learn how staff sorts oyster shells. They visited Albany twice to advocate for the Bill, led meetings with Senators and Assemblymembers to persuade them to co-sponsor the bill, participated in press conferences, and organized multiple letter-writing campaigns at their school.
With the pandemic ravaging the restaurant industry, the bill — which has languished in legislative limbo — might finally have found its moment.
Jacqueline, now an 11th grader at WESS explains, “we intended this bill to incentivize oyster shell donations, and because it does impact restaurants in such a profound way, there's really good motivation to pass the bill this year. We just hosted another letter writing campaign over zoom and we're excited to see where things go from here,” says Jaqueline. “The bill is a great way for smaller restaurants that don't have enough resources to really make donating oyster shells worth it.” “
“The tax credit will directly support restaurants to help them stay afloat,” said Brian Owens, owner of Crave Fishbar. "Even though the tax break is small, every bit helps keep the doors open and our staff paid, especially with the year we've had as a small business.”
Find out who your Assemblymember and who your Senator are:
And if each sponsors the Bill:
If they are already a sponsor or co-sponsor the bill, reach out and thank them for their support.
If your Assemblymember isn't a sponsor or cosponsor, reach out to them on social media, call their office, or fill out their contact form to let them know you want their support for Bill A.258 in the Assembly or Bill S.4741 in the Senate.
Feel free to model your Memo of Support after this example. If your Assemblymember is in the Ways & Means committee, send your Memo of Support to them via social media, email, or their contact form. If not, send the letter to Helene E. Weinstein, Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, at wamchair@nyassembly.gov.
Next time you're around NY Harbor or eating at your favorite NYC restaurant, post a picture on social media and tag @billionoyster, @lindabrosenthal_67, @senator_todd_kaminsky, your Senator or Assemblymember and the hashtags #HelpRestaurantsHelpNYHarbor to help spread the word.
A thriving reef cluster, building habitat for generations
