A nonprofit is seeking to improve the water quality in Moriches Bay by using hundreds of thousands of oysters.
News 12 spoke with volunteer John Jeans, of the
Moriches Bay Project, who explained how the group is reintroducing oysters back in the bay this summer.
The group currently has five floating upweller systems, or FLUPSYs, that hold more than 100,000 oysters. The baby shellfish in those protected barrels eat harmful algae and filter pollutants.
The FLUPSY containers also protect the oysters from predators, such as starfish and crabs.
Marine biologists say one adult oyster can filter about 50 gallons of water a day.
The Moriches Bay Project says through its FLUPSY program and dropping immature oysters into oyster beds, they expect to put 800,000 oysters in the bay this year.