The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is working to restore shellfish reefs in Hong Kong and in more than 150 sites around the world. Reefs are important, because they improve water quality, increase local fish production and biodiversity, and increase natural coastal defences against storms. But shellfish reefs are the most endangered marine habitat on the planet with an estimated 85 percent global loss.
When COVID-19 restrictions allow, we will need your help to complete a variety of tasks at our project sites in Lau Fau Shan and Pak Nai. To protect and restore oyster reefs in Hong Kong, our activities include:
- Shell Recycling: collect discarded oyster shells, sort out usable ones and prepare them in bags so they can be used as substrate for new reefs to grow on.
- Reef Restoration: reconfigure concrete poles in abandoned oyster farms to create more natural reefs.
- Cordgrass Removal: remove invasive spartina cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) that turns wet mudflats into dry land, reducing important habitats for endangered horseshoe crabs and other intertidal animals to feed and breed.
