Md. plants record 485M oysters in Chesapeake Bay EASTON, MD (wesm) - (AP) Maryland has planted a record 485 million oysters in the Chesapeake Bay this year.

Natural resources officials say increased hatchery capacity at the University of Maryland's Horn Point facility in Cambridge has enabled more than 1.4 billion oysters to be planted since 2000.

They have been planted on 1,100 acres of once-productive oyster reefs.

Oysters are ecologically important for the bay because they filter water and create reefs that serve as a habitat for other marine life.

Governor Martin O'Malley also announced a program Wednesday in Easton in which residents with waterfront property can help grow oysters. The program is similar to one run by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

--- On the Net: Marylanders Grow Oysters visit www.dnr.maryland.gov/oysterproject. © Copyright 2009, wesm