‘Once upon a time they covered an area the size of Ireland’: The restoration of Britain’s native oyster reefs is shaping future marine projects around the world

For one week in late September, North Shields Fish Quay was the scene of what looked like a massive art installation: 20 monumental blocks of Marine Crete — an eco-alternative to concrete designed by Arc Marine in Devon — each one engraved, rather beautifully, in ridges and whorls to mimic a natural reef surface. Also present were long tables where several thousand oysters were being individually scrubbed clean in icy water before being glued to the cubes.

It was not art. It was the launch of an innovative project to restore these once plentiful and desirable little bi-valves to coastal waters.

In the North Sea off Whitburn, South Tyneside there were once oyster reefs covering an area the size of Ireland. They produced a thriving market in the protein-rich food source, including speciali