Photo courtesy of DMF. The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries and the Bladen County Solid Waste management will add oyster shell recycling locations at all 17 county waste convenience centers beginning November 19.

MOREHEAD CITY – Folks in Bladen County areas will soon have 17 new places to chuck their oyster shucks.

Bladen County Solid Waste and the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will create oyster shell recycling drop-off areas at all 17 county waste convenience centers on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The first installation will be at the Transfer Station Gate site located at 1522 Mercer Mill Road, Elizabethtown.

“Bladen County Solid Waste is in the process of creating a comprehensive recycling program,” said Robert Mazur, solid waste director of Bladen County. “Providing citizens with drop-offs for their oyster shells will only enhance our recycling efforts.”

The drop-off centers are the most recent additions to a growing number of spots in North Carolina where the public can help restore oyster reefs by recycling their oyster shells. People can recycle other calcium-based shells, such as clams or conchs, too, or request a trailer to transport shells from large oyster roasts.

“County support and assistance is important to the success of the program”, said Sabrina Varnam, coordinator for the program. “I’m very excited about working with Bladen County. I hope this partnership or initiative will help encourage other counties to come on board.”

Bladen County will maintain the sites, collect the shells and stockpile them for DMF collection once a year. The shells will be placed back in North Carolina coastal waters to provide a place for baby oysters to attach and grow.

Oysters are a food source for humans, birds and fish and serve as nature’s water filters. They clean pollutants from the water. Oyster reefs also provide habitat for baby fish and other marine life. When oysters spawn, the larvae need a hard substrate on which to attach and grow. And oysters prefer to attach to shell material.

The state has, for years, used oyster shell in oyster rehabilitation programs, primarily purchasing the shell from oyster shucking operations. However, the demand for oyster shell has increased, so has the cost.

The Oyster Shell Recycling Program started in the fall of 2003 to establish public places where people could donate their shells. The program has grown from collecting 711 bushels of oyster shells in 2003 to more than 32,000 bushels in 2007.

The N.C. General Assembly has established tax credits for shell donated to DMF. State law also bans the disposal of oyster shell in landfills and prohibits state agencies from using shell in landscaping or beautification projects.

For more information and to locate oyster shell collection sites, visit http://www.ncdmf.net/shellfish/recycle1.htm. For information on oyster shell recycling in Bladen County, contact Recycling Coordinator Gloria Allen at (910) 645-4279.