A retired microbiologist has devised a unique way to clean waterways and help reduce our carbon footprint using an unexpected source: oysters.
According to AL.com, retired microbiologist Andy Depaola and University of South Alabama fellow Ben Raines have created the "Shellevator," which can help scale up oyster production locally and globally and reduce oyster farming labor.
"Oysters are kind of the oldest carbon sink in the world," Raines said.
The device can hold 96 oyster bags, each holding up to 500 oysters, and lifts the oysters from the water in just minutes, saving labor costs and energy. It can be relocated and scaled up and down depending on how much you want to produce. The creators say the device can allow one person to raise millions of oysters a year.
"The significance of this cannot be overstated," Depaola said. "I can grow about 20 times the yield in an acre than I can through conventional [manual] methods."
The group's goal is to repopulate and recreate oyster reefs that have been decimated by human consumption in recent decades.
Raines estimated that 1.8 billion oysters have been removed from Mobile Bay over the last century, but the numbers have decreased drastically in recent years. In 2010, 142,359 pounds of oysters were harvested from the Bay, but just 33,586 pounds were harvested in 2015.
Three hundred Shellevators worth of oysters can remove 1,000 tons of carbon from the carbon cycle in just seven months, according to Raines. On top of that, oysters are a keystone species because they have a disproportionately positive impact on the ecosystem — they filter water, utilize carbon to make their shells, and help form reefs.
Depaola and Raines are trying to find ways to reduce the cost of the system, as producing one will run you between $10,000 and $20,000, but the potential for the technology has them hopeful.
🗣️ Should the government be paying people to hunt invasive species?
🔘 Definitely 👍
🔘 Depends on the animal 🤔
🔘 No way 👎
🔘 Just let people do it for free 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
"You can give people a technology where you're creating protein," Raines said. "We think we can revolutionize oyster production around the world."
Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
