2022-04-12-P&E Agenda - Item 6 - Attachment 1 - TNC Noosa_Oyster Project _6_Monthly_Report

Oyster gardening project
TNC partnered with NICA to facilitate oyster gardening in Noosa. Oyster gardening is an
activity whereby locals grow out local oysters, provide by the project, in baskets, or
‘oyster gardens’ suspended from jetties. The volunteer gardeners care for the gardens,
keep citizen science records of their experience and become better educated about
oysters and oyster restoration in the process. Once the juvenile oysters are large
enough to survive on their own, they are carefully placed onto the oyster reef patches
in the project’s restoration sites. These oysters help kick start ecosystem recovery.

An oyster gardening information evening was held in early December to share information with interested Oyster Gardeners
and to share information about the ecosystem restoration project.




Figure 10: Noosa Integrated Catchment Association representatives Alex Western (foreground) and Richard Howard at the
Oyster Gardening information session at Tewantin Marina. Photo by Megan Connell

NICA has also:
    • Engaged over 20 river-front households, 5 community groups and multiple schools through partnerships with NCBA
        and EEH as prospective oyster gardeners. Interested households located in geographically diverse locations across
        the river system including the Noosa Waters canals.
    • Identified multiple additional residential and commercial sites, including Tewantin Marina, where gardeners without
        direct access to the river can also participate in oyster gardening (Jul 2021 - present)
    • Hosted 1 x presentation to NICA's "Monday with NICA" forum (attendees 40+, Oct 2021)
    • Provided volunteers and engaged additional community groups to participate in the cleaning and drying of oyster
        shells located at the Doonan Solid Waste Depot (Nov 2021)
    • Conducted letter drops and engaged residents at over 400 households fronting the river in Noosa, Noosaville, Weyba
        Creek, Tewantin, Cooroibah and Noosa North Shore (October to December 2021)

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