Louisiana Master Naturalists of Greater New Orleans

Volunteers must register in advance here: https://connect.crcl.org/waiver?c1event1=489&c2event1=489

The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) is excited to have you join us in Violet, LA! Launched in June 2014, CRCL’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program recycles shell from participating New Orleans-based restaurants and uses that shell to restore oyster reefs and shoreline habitat across Coastal Louisiana. As a volunteer, you will help prepare the shell for future restoration. Volunteers will place the recycled shell into bags that will later be transported to oyster reef restoration sites. Volunteers will also help clean up our shell pile and remove trash and plastics as we bag. By helping prep the shell, volunteers will play a role in creating a new oyster reef that will allow for the growth of new oysters, create new fish habitat, and act as a wave break which will knock down storm surge and allow new land to build up behind the reef. In addition to bagging oyster shells with the OSRP, volunteers will also be planting seeds in our brand-new cypress tree nursery through our Native Plants Program. Founded in 2000, CRCL’s Native Plants Program (NPP), formerly known as the Habitat Restoration Program, leads our efforts to restore Louisiana’s coastal habitats by engaging volunteers and stakeholders to be a part of the solution through tree and grass plantings. In the Spring of 2022, volunteers constructed nursery beds to grow cypress trees, and now that it is Winter, the beds are ready for seeds!