With the first year of Alabama’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program completed, the 2018 Oyster Trailblazer Calendar is available and captures the importance of oyster reef restoration in an educational coloring book. The Oyster Trailblazer Calendar offers facts on bivalves, sharing their abundant benefits which include cleaning our waters, protecting our shorelines from erosion and providing culinary and nutritional benefits. The Original Oyster House will donate 1,000 calendars on a first-come, first-serve basis to educators who can integrate information into their science program or to utilize them as rewards for environmental stewardship. The calendars will also be included in the Original Oyster House giving back program.
“We are honored to work with all of our partners to establish the area’s first oyster shell recycling program for local restaurants,” stated Mark Berte, the executive director of the Alabama Coastal Foundation. “Oysters play a major role in Alabama’s economy and anything we can do to help support that industry and the environment is good for all Alabamians,” said Berte.
The oyster calendar, illustrated by local artist Alex VanArsdale, captures regional landscape, culture and folklore. The calendar also includes the Oyster Trail sculptures scattered along the Gulf Coast as well as Gulf Coast Ducks, Battleship Alabama and the Original Oyster House coupons. Each 4’ fiberglass oyster is embellished by artists and tells important facts about oysters including their economic and environmental contributions.
After two successful sponsorships of Oyster Trail Sculptures, the Original Oyster House recognized the valuable work of the Oyster Trail and the Mobile Oyster Gardening Program. In 2016, the Original Oyster House became the first restaurant in Alabama to pilot the Oyster Shell Recycling Program, spearheaded by the Alabama Coastal Foundation (ACF).
As of January 1, 2018, the Alabama Oyster Shell Recycling Program has collected over 5.2 million oyster shells! That is an estimated 1.3 million pounds of oyster shells, which equates to about 84 dump trucks of shells or the weight of 111 elephants! There are 30 restaurants in Alabama’s two coastal counties that have helped recycle enough shells to have 13.4 acres of coverage to restore our precious oyster reefs.
The Original Oyster House (OOH) has two locations, Mobile: 3733 Battleship Parkway, on the Causeway and Gulf Shores: 701 Hwy 59 on the Original Oyster House Boardwalk. Both locations offer spectacular waterfront views and have been celebrated as the area’s finest family restaurants for the past 34+ years. To apply for your calendars please visit www.originaloysterhouse.com/trailblazer.
The Alabama Coastal Foundation’s mission is to improve and protect Alabama’s coastal environment through cooperation, education and participation. The organization pursues practical solutions to conservation challenges in a non-partisan manner. To learn more about the Alabama Oyster Shell Recycling Program, become a member, or volunteer, please visit www.joinACF.org
The 2018 Oyster Trailblazer Calendar captures the Gulf Coast’s Oyster Trail, Alabama’s First Oyster Shell Recycling Program and the many benefits oysters provide to our economy, environment and dinner table.