27. Why Oysters Matter More Than You Think
From In Our Backyard Podcast by Jenn Galler
February 6, 2026 · 32 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the importance of oysters in ecosystems and the efforts to restore their populations in San Francisco Bay.
I’m joined by Giulio Salerno from the Wild Oyster Project, an organization working to bring native oyster reefs back to San Francisco Bay and other West Coast estuaries. It’s about repairing ecosystems, building climate resilience, and bringing back something that once quietly held entire coastlines together. The Wild Oyster Project started with a simple but eye-opening realization: oysters used to be everywhere in San Francisco Bay. Huge native reefs filtered the water, stabilized shorelines, created habitat for fish and birds, and helped protect coastal communities from erosion and storms. Then, in what was actually a pretty short span of time, they were nearly wiped out. Overharvesting, pollution, dredging, and development erased more than 99% of the Bay’s native oyster populations. In this episode we talk about this history, the significance of oysters, restoration projects they have, collaborating with others, and more. Contact and connect: https://wildoysters.org/
People in this episode
Host: Jenn Galler
Guest: Giulio Salerno
Topics covered
- oyster restoration
- ecosystem repair
- climate resilience
- coastal protection
- environmental history
Keywords
- oysters
- restoration
- ecosystems
- climate resilience
- San Francisco Bay
- Wild Oyster Project
- coastal communities
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Wild Oyster Project
Places: San Francisco Bay, West Coast
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