Alex Lambert knows there are lots of hazards that can wipe out an oyster crop like his on the Chesapeake Bay.
“I’ve lived with the possibility it might be a winter storm that would take us out, or a very deep freeze – but, not this,” he said.
That unexpected peril is algae, something that typically coexists peacefully with other aquatic life in the bay.
But Lambert, who owns a shellfish company bearing his surname, lost his entire oyster crop — valued at about $400,000 — when it was engulfed by a dark red algal bloom last month.
Oysters are sown as “seeds,” juvenile versions of the shellfish, and harvested at various stages of their development. An oyster farm might stagger two or three year’s worth of mollusks at a time to ensure timely, successive harvests.
That means the loss of this year’s crop will affect Lambert’s business for the next couple years. He had already planted his seed crop this past spring and now is scrambling to find replacements.
“I am also trying to find larger oysters that I can cultivate for harvest next spring,” Lambert said. “The profit margin will be smaller because I will pay more for these, but at least I might deliver something to my customers.”
Lambert began growing a hobby oyster crop off his parents’ dock in 2016, the site of his current farm, after becoming fascinated watching nearby oystermen.
In 2019, he left a career with a high-profile NYC accounting firm to open Lambert Shellfish, located at the mouth of Hungars Creek near Machipongo. But the waterway and two other creeks — Nassawadox and Cherrystone — have been inundated with Alexandrium Monilatum, a mahogany-colored algae that emits a bluish green bioluminescent glow at night.
Algae blooms tend to proliferate more in warmer waters of the late summer and early fall, fueled by rain runoff that carries nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural fertilizer. When algae overpopulates and congregates in masses, it can result in a harmful bloom that releases toxins as the algae decomposes. This also depletes oxygen levels in the water, which can affect finfish.
Mass die-offs of species including spot, flounder and menhaden have been reported. Clams can also be affected. Other than a rare skin rash, humans and other mammals are not.
And the losses to the bloom could go far beyond Lambert’s bottom line. In laboratory conditions, one adult oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. A loss like Lambert’s 4 million oysters can have a big impact on the health of local waterways.
Lambert found out late in the day on September 17 from another grower that a bloom was dangerously close to his farm. He tried to save what he could, but there was little time to react.
“Even a 24-hour head’s up could have given us a fighting chance,” he said. “Better monitoring and notification is needed.”
The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) sent a warning about the bloom to at least one aquafarmer the day after Lambert’s crop was wiped out.
He recalled dropping his daughter Rowan off at school afterward, then sobbing in his vehicle.
“I’ve spent a lot of time crying in that truck lately,” Lambert said.
And then he even lost that.
After the nor’easter late in September, Lambert drove through standing water to the aquafarm from his home in Nassawadox. His truck died and had to be towed.
“That was absolutely the proverbial nail in the coffin,” Lambert said. “What else could possibly go wrong?”
One silver lining for Lambert is that there could be help out there for farmers like him.
“Several potential avenues for assistance are being explored,” said John Wallace, communications director with VIMS.
Wallace said the aftermath is ongoing and VIMS will continue to monitor conditions and explore relief options.
According to Hèléne Doughty, associate extension agent with the Virginia Cooperative Extension in Machipongo, “although an event scale loss assessment has not been finalized, we know the disaster has had a very serious impact on producers.”
A formal disaster, which would open up additional aid, has not yet been declared at state or federal levels.
On September 25, U.S. Representatives Jen Kiggans and Rob Wittman sent a formal request to federal Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins seeking emergency federal assistance for those affected.
Meanwhile, the nor’easter dispersed the bloom in Northampton and prevented it from migrating northward to Accomack County. Water levels tested in Northampton creeks since then report normal to insignificant amounts of algae.
Bob Boardman is the farm manager for Tarkill Aquaculture Ventures LLC in Onancock. In 30 years on the Eastern Shore, he’s lost shellfish crops a total of four times, but never to an algal event. The last was 2014 to an unattributed “oyster mortality event.”
Boardman has talked to several people who have sustained losses, but said the full scope of this event has yet to be realized.
“A lot of growers don't want people to know they've been wiped out,” he said. “They're trying to get what they can elsewhere for their customers.”
And the threat of another bloom didn’t end when the nor’easter blew in. The species of algae responsible for choking Lambert’s oysters encapsulates — a kind of protective hibernation — over winter to survive the colder waters and will reemerge next spring when things warm up. No one knows if it will cause another harmful event next year.
For now, Lambert is taking it day by day. He happily reports his truck is working again.
“It’s been a surreal experience,” he said. “We will figure it out and get through it.”
