The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium (MASGC) works to protect, enhance and restore coastal ecosystems. Many of MASGC’s research projects and engagement programs include working with resource managers. MASGC provides them with the tools they need to make management decisions. Some of those tools include research, data, scientific models and best management practices.
MASGC is a leader in regional approaches to understanding and maintaining healthy ecosystems. Sea Grant uses regional planning to identify information gaps, define research priorities and facilitate delivery of information and technology to the people who need it.
Rapid coastal development, greater demands on fisheries resources and other human activities are leading to decreased water quality, changes to fish populations, wetlands loss and a host of other environmental impacts. MASGC promotes ecosystem-based management, which focuses on the whole ecosystem and not just one species at a time, to maintain vital habitats and inform restoration efforts.
Whether funding cutting-edge restoration techniques, identifying critical habitats, gathering baseline data or organizing volunteers, MASGC provides science-based information that continually brings new, relevant information to the field.
Projects
Getting the most bang for your oyster enhancement buck
The research team will compare six oyster reef enhancement methods to determine which ones provide the greatest ecological and economic benefits for the money invested. Using existing studies, expert input and cost-benefit calculations, the team will estimate the value of ecosystem services, market returns and tradeoffs, such as selling farmed oysters versus using them for restoration. The results will help agencies, practitioners and growers choose the most cost-effective strategies for strengthening oyster reefs and supporting coastal communities.