Southeast Toyota helps Living Reef Restoration

Friends of the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve informed local Historic City News reporters that Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC in Jacksonville recently sent a team to assist in building reef from over 5,000 pounds of oyster shell.

The “Community Oyster Shell Recycling” and “Living Reef Restoration Project” is a program to construct oyster reefs along over 1,000 feet of shoreline to help stabilize the riverbank and provide new habitat for plants and animals.

“A few weeks later, Toyota donated $1,500 to the project through the Friends of the Reserve,” spokesperson Teri Webley told reporters. “The money will help purchase important supplies for the project; including materials for bagging the oyster shells.”

These reefs are all constructed from oyster shuck collected from local restaurants; including Aunt Kate’s, Cap’s on the Water, Hurricane Patty’s, and the Matanzas Inlet Restaurant.

Other project partners with the National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Friends of the Reserve who are restoring oyster reefs along the Tolomato River include St Johns Technical High School and the St Johns County School District.

Learn more about these programs.