Rink2Reef

Description

Hockey sticks are made from non-recyclable materials, and broken sticks will end up in landfills.
Our program uses these otherwise useless broken sticks to create habitat for oysters, sponges and other filter-feeding aquatic organisms that remove pollutants and excessive nutrients from local waterways.
Broken sticks are constructed into a reef and suspended from docks by homeowners, business owners and environmental enthusiasts allowing the structures to be home to up to 400 oysters and other small aquatic sea life.

Oysters are a type of shellfish. They live in saltwater and brackish estuaries and bays. They are filter feeders, which means they strain the water around them finding plankton and other particles of food while at the same time remove pollutants. A single oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day. As little as 100 oysters in an estuary can suction these nutrient pollutants and spit out crystal-clear water at a rate of 5,000 gallons a day. Oysters seek out and attach themselves to the hockey stick artificial reefs. The 9.17-cubic- foot hockey-stick units become home to as many as 400 oysters. A single Rink2Reef habitat could clean 20,000 gallons of water per day. Oysters are nature’s perfect water filter. They constantly cycle and improve water quality.