Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin signed an order reopening shellfish beds in Atlantic coastal waters from Little Egg Inlet south to Cape May Point, effective at sunrise on Thursday.
Commissioner Martin signed the order following water monitoring and tissue sampling that found no issues with contamination from bacteria or viruses as a result of the storm. The beds had been closed since Oct. 29 as a precaution as a result of the approach of Hurricane Sandy.
The DEP has also extended the Delaware Bay oyster harvest season until Nov. 30, or until the annual quota is reached, to help oystermen recover losses resulting from closures of beds in the bay. Those beds were reopened as of Monday.
The DEP is also allowing commercial oyster harvesting on Saturdays, which will help the shellfisheries industry compensate for lost time and revenues that resulted in the closure of beds due to the storm.
