Last January, Governor Hogan dismissed the Army Corps from continuing restoration of tributaries on the Eastern Shore saying that until we had a long-expected five-year report on the matter, Maryland was suspending the program. That report is now in and can be found at: http://dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/Pages/oysters/5-Year-Oyster-Review-Report.aspx
In summary, the report states that most of Maryland’s sanctuaries are performing well with an increase in biomass and multiple class animals (different age groups). Sancturies that have been restored by the Corps over the past three years have been extremely successful, according to the report, bringing Governor’s Hogan decision to suspend restoration into question.
The report also suggested that sanctuaries that were ineffective could be returned to the public fishery for harvest. In this case, the report suggested other more viable acreage should become sanctuary to offset the loss. In all, Maryland should maintain 20% to 30% of is thriving oyster bars in sanctuaries.
The report lists the St. Mary’s River as a Tier 1 sanctuary—the highest ranking awarded to any sanctuary—with an increase in biomass and excellent recruitment over the past five years (2011-2015).