Stabæk youngsters pick oysters to save the biodiversity

Stabæk youngsters pick oysters to save the biodiversity

The NTG girls from Stabæk, Stabæk Gatelag (Street Team) and guys from Bekkestua Rotary Club put on gloves and went to pick oysters at Storøyodden.

Increased populations of Pacific oysters can have negative consequences for biodiversity and lead to the deterioration or loss of important conservation values, as well as negatively affecting bathing and recreational areas. The species can form large reefs that change soft-bottom areas into impassable hard-bottom areas dominated by sharp oyster shells.

When Pacific oysters, which are non-native species in many regions, proliferate excessively, they can outcompete and displace native species. This disrupts the natural balance and biodiversity of the ecosystem, potentially leading to a decline in native shellfish populations and altering the overall ecosystem structure.

There was a high level of interaction when the Street Team picked oysters at Storøyodden before 17 May.

The NTG youngsters from Stabæk, Stabæk Gatelag and Bekkestua Rotary Club joined the activity. They worked efficiently and well for just over two hours and the bags were quickly filled with both large and small Pacific oysters. There were huge quantities of Pacific oysters along the beaches and headlands in the Oslo Fjord. Just over 300 kg were harvested in a couple of hours by the team.

This area will be picked several times now in early summer and it is needed. Just a few metres out where the tide came in eventually we could have filled further bags and many hundreds of kilos more.

Rune Klemetsdal, guide of the young participants

Buns, bananas, coffee and water were served to all in a common finish in the sun. Thanks to the NTG girls in Stabæk and the guys from Bekkestua Rotary club for their efforts for the gang from the street team in Stabæk, who have planned a training camp and trip to Fevik in the autumn.