Collecting Shell to Sustain Shellfish Habitat...By harvesting Vineyard shellfish we are inadvertently removing precious habitat from the waters. MV Shell Recovery replaces that habitat with recycled shell! Shell is a truly native source needed for the continuation of wild oyster populations. Martha’s Vineyard is an island rich in shell-fisheries but more often than not shell is ending up in driveways or landfills. Wild oyster survival is dependent on small bits of shell forming a natural bed on the seafloor to which oyster spawn cements. Shell (primarily calcium carbonate) dissolves slowly to neutralize acidic waters. When shell is removed from a water-body at harvest, the oyster’s habitat suffers. By returning shell to the seafloor the Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group works toward re-establishing oyster populations Without shell recycling on MV there would be a shortage of available shell forcing MVSG to purchase recycled shell from the mainland for oyster restoration efforts.