VIRGINIA BEACH —The overcast sky blanketed the Lynnhaven River in silver as the Jenny S welcomed its passengers aboard.
Tucked into the Pleasure House Point Natural Area, the Brock Environmental Center served as a venue for part of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Chesapeake Oyster Science Symposium. Oyster and environmental industry professionals from across the bay gathered in Hampton Roads to discuss one of the most important creatures in the Mid-Atlantic, including current restoration efforts and developments in the aquaculture industry.
Wednesday’s field trip brought together attendees from Annapolis to Hampton Roads to learn about environmental work in and around the Lynnhaven River.
Joey Carmack, operations manager at First Landing Seafood, said there have been noticeable improvements in the water quality because of oyster restoration in the river.
“I took a little break and moved down to North Carolina after I’d done this for two or three years here, and when I came back, it seemed like a different river in some regards,” Carmack said of the restoration on the Lynnhaven River. “It’s definitely been efforts with CBF, and it’s really nice to see. I even talk to all the local fishermen and everyone knows it, because year after year, the water’s getting clearer. Sometimes in the winter, we’ve got up to like 10-20 feet of visibility here in the river, which I never thought could happen.”