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The Crimson

The student news site of Bernards High School

The Crimson

The student news site of Bernards High School

The Crimson

Featured Hobby Oyster Farming

Many may know Donny Meyer from the morning announcements, but what people oftentimes don’t know is that the senior is an oyster farmer.

The summer of sophomore year, Meyer took up oyster farming. He decided to take up this hobby when a Cornell run organization was looking for people to partake in Aquaculture. This organization went from town to town, attempting to get most locals involved. Each summer since sophomore year, Donny has traveled to Westhampton Beach, NY to farm. He lives there in the summer because oyster farming is “best to conduct in the local area.”

For those who are unfamiliar with the process of oyster farming,  Meyer explained the task. He said, “The oysters are inserted into small mesh cages. At this point, roughly 1,000 oysters can fit in the 1×3 cages. After this, the cages are attached to a rope and pushed into the water. The end result is a series of ropes attached to a dock or bulkhead with oyster habitats attached, sitting just under the surface of the water.”

The process itself doesn’t sound too complicated, but it can be dull according the BHS senior. “It can be rather tedious because of the repetitive nature of cleaning and administrating over the oysters. Not to say I dislike the task, but I would be lying if I said it was all fun and games.”

Meyer’s main responsibility for creating the oyster farm is to help clean the water of the bays. He said, “Oysters are able to eat the microorganisms in the water that give it the murky brown appearance. If the oyster population grows enough, the water will be much clearer.”

Meyer’s unique hobby is not only interesting, but is also helpful to the environment. When the oysters have reached an adult size and are too large to properly care for, they are released into the wild where they can create natural reefs.

Donny Meyer’s unique hobby is truly indicative of the multifaceted Bernards High School’s multifaceted student body.

 

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