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At Point Reyes National Seashore, environmental ideology has run into hard science, with a tug-of-war for management of an estuary coming down to the question of what is the most ecologically healthy thing to do.
On its face, it’s a legal battle between the National Park Service, which owns the land, and an oyster farmer, who leases a small plot of that land to operate a century-old aquaculture operation in Drakes Eserto. Park officials want to turn the estuary into a wilderness area (it is currently designated only a “potential wilderness”) and have told the farmer that they will evict him when his lease is up. The farmer, meanwhile, wants to continue what he sees as a sustainable aquaculture operation that gives just as much to the ecosystem as it takes from it.
But at the heart of the argument is science. According to the park service, oyster farming degrades the estuary’s ecosystems– its racks shade out eelgrass beds, its motor boats scare away seal pups, and the oysters themselves out-compete native mollusks. But many scientists and sustainable farm groups say that simply isn’t true, and they have the science to prove it.
The struggle also highlights two competing tenants of environmentalism: the preservation of untouched, pristine wilderness versus the sustainable stewardship of land and water through farming.
You may listen to the “Oysters on the Outs” radio report online, as well as find additional links and resources. Also see additional photos for this radio report.
Charlie Foster reports for QUEST.
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