The Economic & Environmental History of Shellfish Aquaculture in Rhode Island and its

Lessons for the Future

The Economic & Environmental History of Shellfish Aquaculture in Rhode Island and its

Lessons for the Future

Michael A. Rice, ProfessorDept. of Fisheries, Animal & Veterinary Sciences

University of Rhode Island

SummarySummary• Milestones in the development

of RI’s shellfish industry• Shellfish in the 19th Century

diet• Sewage & development of the

NSSP • Oysters and the RI economy,

then & now• Environmental impact of

shellfish; estimates & comparisons, then & now

• Implications of decades investments in clean water & renewed interest in shellfish farming

Growth of Shellfisheries in Rhode IslandGrowth of Shellfisheries in Rhode Island

• Shellfisheries documented 1643 by Roger Williams

• 1734 statute on using oysters in lime kilns

• 1766 statute restricting harvest to tongs

• Oysters farmed in Rhode Island since 1798

• Oysters considered important food before refrigeration

• By 1910, there were 21,000 acres (8500 ha) of oyster farms in Rhode Island

Comparison retail price per pound in USAComparison retail price per pound in USAItem Year & Prices .

1909 2013inflation adj. 2013 actual

Oyster meat $0.12 $2.83 $19.00 Fish* $0.30 $7.09 10.00Beef* $0.30 $7.09 6.95Chicken* $0.36 $8.50 2.25 Eggs* $0.30 $7.09 2.49

*Bone or shell-free price estimates

Sources: MacKenzie 1996; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; 2013 market surveys

Average RI & CT landing prices of oysters per US standard bushel (~80lb)

Average RI & CT landing prices of oysters per US standard bushel (~80lb)

Year Prices .

Actual US$ Inflation adjusted to 2013 US$1880 $1.22 $56.70 1890 0.63 20.791900 1.09 46.071910 0.65 17.011920 0.74 8.651930 1.12 15.691940 1.08 18.041950 2.41 23.391960 9.57 75.611970 14.00 84.391980 26.26 74.531990 59.60 106.652000 92.00 124.652010 115.00 123.34

Sources: MacKenzie 1996; Greg Silkes, American Mussel (pers comm); U.S. Dept. of Labor Inflation Statistics.

Invention of the flush toilet greatly increases sewage to Narragansett Bay

Invention of the flush toilet greatly increases sewage to Narragansett Bay

• 1901“The Providence Sewage Treatment System is put into operation. The chemical precipitation plant, the third of its kind in the United States, is the largest of its type ever built. The system consists of a pumping station at Ernest Street to lift sewage to Field's Point for treatment.”

• 1910 “Providence's sewage treatment plant begins to run into problems due to inadequacies of the chemical precipitation process and the continuing growth of the City. Providence begins barging and dumping large volumes of sludge into Narragansett Bay, east of Prudence Island, about 14 miles south of Providence.”

Source: Providence Journal & Narragansett Bay Commission History

Consequences of the Sewer System 1900-1925Consequences of the Sewer System 1900-1925

• Incidences of water-borne diseases down 90% in the city

• But, millions of liters of wastewater pour into Narragansett Bay

• Increase of bacterial diseases (typhoid & cholera) associated with eating shellfish

• Concerns by public health officials about epidemics

• Media reports and several wealthy individuals die from shellfish –calls for action

• NSSP instituted in 1925

Price of a dozen half-shell oystersPrice of a dozen half-shell oysters

Typical RI Restaurant Prices

Year actual inf. adj.1885 0.36 $14.881890 0.12 4.021910 0.15 3.541920 0.25 2.922013 19.95 19.95

Source: MacKenzie (1996).

RI Oyster Lease Fees Paid to State

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1860 1880 1900 1920 1940

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Oyster lease area facts• Peak is 1912 at about 21,000 acres• Peak lease fees inflation adjusted to 2013 = $3.26 millionSource: RI Commissioners of Shellfisheries Reports

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RI Oyster Production Statistics 1911RI Oyster Production Statistics 1911

Current Status of Rhode Island AquacultureYear Am. Oysters Quahogs Eu. Oysters Value Farms Acres Leased

1995 87,800 92,514 $86,668 5 81996 126000 187629 2000 $92,120 6 91997 192225 160886 9125 $275,946 6 171998 343700 165456 0 $296,980 10 261999 352775 246642 15000 $214,836 14 282000 550582 87897 $314,977 12 302001 543978 122196 $299,998 18 51.52002 908000 138199 $478,160 18 53.752003 1,163,519 22477 $563,891 20 612004 1,138,718 23048 $572,994 22 70.32005 1,530,815 32,745 $744,319 24 852006 2,357,736 84,500 $1,348,525 28 992007 2,551,493 34,195 $1,587,857 30 1232008 2,680,036 25,150 $1,692,195 30 1232009 2,821,166 52,000 $1,785,135 33 134.52010 3,852,414 76,900 $2,326,948 38 1412011 4,072,186 58,400 $2,459,761 43 160.252012 4,303,866 81,425 $2,822,734 50 172.55

Data Courtesy of David Alves & David Beutel, CRMC

What about Carrying Capacity?What about Carrying Capacity?1911 2012

• landing 57,825 mt 397 mt• area 20,846ac = 8,436ha 172.5ac = 69.8 ha• production 6.8 mt/ha 5.6 mt/ha

Conclusions of Pietros & Rice (2003) mesocosm study:•1911 production levels can shift phytoplankton species composition…but does not affect overall biomass of phytoplankton

Conclusions of Byron (2011) modeling study:• Ecological CC= 119,436 mt of cultured oysters in a total area of 37,400 ha = 3.2 mt/ha• Production CC =1,301,520 mt of cultured oysters in a total area of 37,400 ha = 34.8 mt/ha

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Decline of RI oyster farms 1912-1952Decline of RI oyster farms 1912-1952

• Increase raw sewage inputs 1910s• Deforestation & cumulative effects of soil erosion• Increased metal finishing effluents starting 1870s to 1980s• Gov. T.F. Green’s ‘bloodless revolution’ of 1935 and socio-political change• Hurricane of 1938• Labor shortages during WWII• 1952 – last farm, Warren Oyster Company gave up leases

Herbert Marshall Howe Farm In Bristol, ca1900

Hurricane damage, 1938

--- but, fixing the problems since--- but, fixing the problems since

• 1925 National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP)

• 1933 USDA Soil Conservation Service (now NRCS)

• 1972 Clean Water Act & EPA• StB & other enviro-activism• RIDEM Water Resources & CRMC• NBC: CSO abatement & the RI Big

Dig• RIDEM F& W shellfish

management• 1981 to 2003 overhaul of

aquaculture laws• & Many others serving as a major

investments in clean water

Photo by Gilbane Construction Company

Environmentalism & Economics for Working Waterfronts & Sustainable RI Shellfish?

Environmentalism & Economics for Working Waterfronts & Sustainable RI Shellfish?

Dykstra’s Oyster House, Upper Point Judith Pond, Wakefield ca1910

Why not?

Thank you for sustainable RI shellfish from party animals, everywhere!!

1852 Lithograph by Elijah Chapman Kellogg (1811-1881)