In 2019, Texas became the last US coastal state to allow cultivated oyster mariculture (COM) . Included in the legislation is a 200 ft buffer for seagrass habitat . This is significant for the LLM in South Padre Island (SPI) which is home to over 60 percent of the state’s seagrass beds making many prime areas for COM unusable. The LLM area is home to many economically disadvantaged people. The shallow- water oyster grow-out system is being developed and tested at UTRGV’s Experimental Field Station, in a shallow strip of water that is mostly devoid of sea grass located North of the SPI Convention Center in approved shellfish growing water . The ideal system would allow for anyone to start up an oyster grow out operation with minimal investment , easy maintenance and locally sourced materials .
The system uses anchored lines seeded with oysters held horizontally above the seabed. Lines are held above the bottom using &fraq34; inch PVC stakes that are put into the substrate leaving 6 inches in the water column . The version of the stake that has been the most efficient and cost effective has a fluted bottom (FB) (Fig. 1) vs no flute . FB been tested for two years and has withstood various severe weather conditions including Northers and tropical storms . Next is the stake top. Multiple versions of this have proven to be effective to differing degrees . The first iteration was a nail bent (NB) and attached to the stake at about half an inch below its highest point. On multiple occasions ropes have come loose with this version which increases the workload of the farmer and the possibility of crop loss . The second iteration had a pinched top (PT) that the line snapped into and has been the most successful for maintenance and stability. However initial installation was tricky, needed a special tool and required more time and effort than NB . A third iteration currently being developed takes from previous designs. This iteration (Clip top) should be easy to install and requires very little maintenance. It is being 3D printed using PETG filament. This system provides a low maintenance, low startup cost solution for the LLM which takes seagrass limitations into account.