BOP's 5 acre oyster reef at bush terminal park will enhance the park's water quality, BIO-diversity, and enhance the community access and education offerings currently available through BOP's pilot…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded Billion Oyster Project $825,000 on August 1, 2026, under the Congressionally Identified Awards and Projects program (CFDA 11.469) to construct and expand a 5-acre oyster reef at Bush Terminal Park in New York.

The project will enhance water quality and biodiversity at the site while scaling Billion Oyster Project's existing pilot community reef by more than tenfold. Advanced reef structures, including bay balls, will provide shoreline protection against climate change and increased storm frequency. The expanded reef will enable on-water STEM education and green-jobs training for thousands of additional students and community members from South Brooklyn, building on current usage by over 1,000 students from Sunset Park, Park Slope, and Gowanus across 35 Title I schools in the region. The project serves as an environmental justice initiative, expanding recreational and educational access for the Sunset Park community waterfront.

Performance runs through May 31, 2027, at the Bush Terminal Park location in New York, NY 10004.

BOP's 5 acre oyster reef at bush terminal park will enhance the park's water quality, BIO-diversity, and enhance the community access and education offerings currently available through BOP's pilot community reef located there by more than 10X. In addition, the inclusion of more advanced reef structures (BAY balls) will enhance shoreline protection measures in the face of climate change and the increasing frequency of significant storms, while ensuring the local environmental justice community of sunset park has expanded access for education and recreation activities on their local waterfront. Over 1,000 sunset park, park slope and gowanus students currently use the site as part of BOP's on-water stem curriculum, which is on offer in 35 south brooklyn schools - 75% of which are title I. This increased reef size will allows thousands more south brooklyn students and community members to benefit from on-water stem education and green-jobs training provided by BOP throughout the year.