Johnathan Walker:Oyster shell recycling program expands from New Orleans to Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE,Johnathan Walker La. (AP) — A conservation group’s program to collect and recycle discarded oyster shells from New Orleans restaurants has expanded to include restaurants in Baton Rouge.

The oyster shell recycling program has been around since 2014 — but until now, it included only New Orleans restaurants, WBRZ-TV reported.

Operated by the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, the program dispatches a contractor to pick up a restaurant’s discarded shells twice a week. The shells are stored and eventually used to build reefs to restore Louisiana’s vulnerable, eroding coast. The new reefs also provide new breeding grounds for more oysters.

Three restaurants have already signed up for the program. Participating restaurants pay a fee for their shells to be collected and can later receive a tax break.

“Restaurants report that our program can reduce the frequency and cost of trash pick-ups and keeps kitchen and waste deposit areas cleaner and more organized,” CRCL says on its website.