Brevard Zoo Conservation Report 2016 | Page 25

Results since 2010 50,000+ volunteers have participated in restoring oyster reefs in the Mosquito Lagoon since 2007. 43,000+ Oyster mats deployed by volunteers One man's trash is another man's treasure. All of the empty oyster shells used in our oyster restoration programs come from the dinner table! Results since 2014 180,000 live oysters have been successfully grown and placed on reefs 60 new sections of oyster reef were added 15 control sites were built in Brevard We encourage restaurants, seafood festivals and shellfish distributors to collect the discarded shells, and then a local trucking company transports these shells to a recycling site. Through this program, bearing the clever “Shuck & Share” name developed by partner Marine Discovery Center, the Zoo has collected more than one million pounds of shell and shared that resource with UCF, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and others who are involved in oyster restoration. 24