Garden Club of Lawrence Partners with the Town of Hempstead on Two Conservation Projects on Long Island, NY.

Using Nature—Oysters and Kelp—Garden Club of Lawrence Seeks to Improve Water Quality

January 28, 2026

By: Jennifer Lawrence

Garden Club of Lawrence (GCL) and the Town of Hempstead on Long Island are partnering on two important conservation projects to improve water quality in the surrounding waters along the south shore of Long Island, New York. The first partnership, begun in 2022, focused on oysters, and the more recent effort is dedicated to kelp.
 
GCL was inspired by the Billion Oyster Project whose purpose is to restore oyster reefs in New York Harbor. The club relied on a number of experts including Stony Brook University and Stephen Naham of the Town of Hempstead Department of Conservation and Waterways. Together, Mr. Naham and club members hang spat—young oysters that have adhered to shells-- in cages off a pier. The cages are transported to sites approved by the New York State Department of Conservation to begin the process of creating oyster reefs. Adult oysters act as natural filters by removing pollutants and excess nitrogen, a process that leads to cleaner water while the oyster shells create a reef that provides a marine habitat. The cages are emptied and reused. When the oysters are large enough to survive, they are removed from the cages and deposited directly into a distributary channel.  
 
The club collaborated again with Mr. Naham and many other volunteers to harvest kelp by setting the lines in the cooler November waters and retrieving them in May.  Kelp serves two environmental purposes: to filter water and to create non-chemical fertilizer. The club’s intention in growing kelp is to improve water quality by using the kelp to help absorb excess carbon dioxide. Once the kelp is harvested, it is rinsed, dried, and ground into fertilizer that is distributed to club members.