In 2021 Seawilding and CAOLAS received Funding from Highlands and Islands Environment Foundation (HIEF) that enabled CAOLAS to learn from Seawilding to establish a Native Oyster Restoration Project in Loch Aline (LNOP). This project became the key to engaging the wider community with the issues facing the marine environment.
We quickly learned that by having a tangible, long-term project underway within Loch Aline, gave us a platform to build relationships, raise knowledge, understanding, appreciation of the native oyster species and all the historic and current impacts that led to their depletion. This, in turn, lead to wider discussions on how the community could better manage the loch and advocate for the long-term improvement of its health.