Oysters and Mushrooms

Happy Friday, everyone! It's been a busy week and I haven't gotten out much, so today's post will be about some neat things I found on the internet!

As you may know, water is pretty important to outdoorsy people such as myself. We need it to hydrate our bodies, and to do many activities (fishing, swimming, surfing, etc.) there must be a large amount of clean water. Unfortunately, we humans are GROSS and put a whole lot of nasty stuff into the water on this planet. It's a bad thing and we should feel bad. There is hope, however, hope from two somewhat unexpected, natural sources: oysters and mushrooms. Take a look!

Oysters

Oysters are masters of purifying water. They might look like they're just sitting there, but one adult oyster can filter something like two gallons of water per hour, and they filter it right good. They are also good at building structure (called reefs) that provide habitat for other briny creatures and can protect shorelines from wave damage. On the East coast, some people have noticed the power packed into these little molluscs. They've come up with some neat plans to create oyster habitat to help clean up their waters and bring the area to a more natural, more usable, state. I think it's a fantastic plan, and am kind of hoping the idea takes off for areas around Puget Sound, like where the Duwamish river, our local Superfund site, dumps into Elliot bay, or down in Budd inlet right by Olympia, which has some nasty stuff in it. The more filters we can get in our water, the better! People won't be able to eat the oysters from contaminated waters, but they will be able to live next to and recreate in a cleaner, healthier body of water.

Oyster links!

Reestablishing Olympia Oyster Populations in Puget Sound, Washington
Puget Sound Restoration Fund - Eat Oysters
Picture of an Oyster vendor in old New York Turns out, the now ubiquitous hot-dog cart is an uppity newcomer. Oyster carts are the original! Some history for you. 

Mushrooms

Ok, so oysters are crazy water-filtering machines; I'm sure you're wondering what mushrooms can do to compare. As it turns out, mushrooms are like icebergs: what you see on the surface is just a fraction of the whole. Attached to the mushroom that you are used to seeing on your plate is what's called the Mycelium. A mushroom is the fruit of the mycelium, the reproductive organ of this network of filaments. Now, the mycelium is cool for a few reasons. First, it can break down matter and turn it into mushroom food. Second, it can be super dense. It is possible to find eight miles of mycelium in one cubic inch of dirt. Mind = blown, right? Finally, if you put a hyper-dense mesh of material that can break down things like petroleum and bacteria in a burlap sack and toss it in a drain pipe, it can significantly affect the quality of the water that exits said pipe. How cool is that? Oily, dirty water goes in, cleaner, healthier water flows out, fish and frogs and birds and plants downstream all benefit from the magical mycelium. Mushrooms and old burlap sacks are cheap, too, which gives me a little hope that we could throw a mushroom bag in every drain that goes to a stream or river.

Mushroom links!

You need to watch this This guy is a super smart mycologist, not an orator. Give him a couple minutes and he'll change your LIFE.
Mycoremediation in Puget Sound
Fungi for the People I just like the name.

Oysters and mushrooms. They're known for being delicious, and although they're not going to win any beauty contests, they have definitely won a place in my heart and my mind as a way to safeguard and rejuvenate our waters. I hope this has sparked something in you, too. Go seed some oysters, grow some mushrooms, and look for other strange and wonderful ways to save our world!