Armed with grants from the Toyota Motor Corporation and the Virginian Pilot, and working in partnership with the Virginia Marine Resource Commission (VMRC), the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) has been able to supply nearly 30 floats and seed oysters to school groups. Throughout this school year the students and their sponsors will monitor and maintain the oysters and their immediate environment, reporting monthly on water quality as well as growth and condition of the oysters.

      Their statistics will be posted here so one will be able to compare water quality and oyster growth across the scope of the project.

      At the end of the school year the school teams will return their oysters to the CBF which will spread the oysters onto several reconstructed oyster reefs around the Bay with the hope of reviving the oyster population, which will begin to clear up the Bay's turbidity, which in turn will allow more light to penetrate more deeply which should encourage more submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) growth, etcetera.

The CBF is asking for a three year commitment from school groups and is hoping the groups may also be interested in getting involved in other related projects, such as wetland restoration, to be set up through partnerships with the cities along the Bay. Wetland restoration and tree planting will first begin in the spring of 1998.

For more information, contact Laurie Sorabella via E-Mail at CBF. <blockquote> <ul TYPE="CIRCLE"> <li><a href="data-s.html">Data</a> <li>Schools Home <li><a href="schools-list.html">Particapating Schools</a> <li><a href="foto-s.html">Photo Gallery</a> </ul> </blockquote>

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