A YEAR OF OCEAN RESTORATION WITH THE BLUE MARINE FOUNDATION

We're not just protecting the Ocean, we're restoring it.

Did you know that each OceanSaver pack donates 1% to Ocean Conservation?

Read more about the impact we're having with our Ocean conservation work below

The Solent is a 510 km2 channel of saltmarshes, mudflats, seagrass beds and oyster beds, home to our native shellfish, cuttlefish, seahorses and dolphins.

Sadly, most of the Solent’s habitats and species are struggling, and native oysters, key ecosystem engineers, are almost entirely absent.

Globally, an estimated 85 per cent of oyster beds and reef habitats have been lost, making oyster beds one of the world’s most imperilled marine habitats.

Fortunately, there’s hope - as Solent Seascape Project is the first of its kind in the UK to initiate seascape scale nature recovery.

By restoring the Solent’s seascape, we will provide nature-based solutions to many of the issues currently affecting it and the people who depend on it, as well as helping to fight the impacts of climate change.

Change is on its way. 

Since April 2024 every OceanSaver pack donates 1% to the Solent, specifically the ‘Oyster Restoration Project’ supporting populations and survival of these incredible marine, keystone species:

💡 A single oyster can filter 200 litres of water every day – improving water quality, providing habitat to other fish and marine life, and acting as a natural defence to coastal erosion.

🌊 Naturally occurring native oyster reefs have all been lost from the Solent, leaving fragmented remnant populations of oysters and historic beds which are not generally home to enough oysters to be officially classed as ‘beds’. 

💥 This likely mostly due to overfishing and the introduction of invasive species such as Pacific oysters.

That's where OceanSavers like YOU can make a difference.

Thanks to you, we’re helping support:

🦪 Oyster nurseries: a network of oyster nurseries, being suspended below the surface of the water from pontoons, working in partnership with marinas. 

🪸 Oyster reefs: four hectares of oyster reef have been created in areas protected from fishing, restored with oysters to re-establish wild populations. 

🐚 Restoration hatchery: A hatchery on the river Hamble producing the next generation of oysters for release onto new reefs.

👥 Community outreach: Engagement with volunteers and schools to help raise awareness of oyster restoration and its importance. 

“We’re grateful for OceanSaver’s contribution to supporting our pioneering work in the Solent Seascape Project – the first seascape scale restoration project in the UK. By making small everyday changes at home, we can help restore the health of our Ocean” - Charles Clover, Co-Founder of Blue Marine Foundation.

✍️ Sign this petition for World Ocean Day: https://act.for-the-ocean.org/act/protect-uk-marine-havens

🌱 Volunteer in the Solent: https://solentseascape.com/get-involved/

🎧 Listen to oyster reefs: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIRaLboNRZc/