While one might assume that lowering huge white blocks of concrete into the sea was an attempt at dumping construction waste offshore, in Britain's North Sea it is a conservation effort. The country is dumping 20 carefully designed structures into the deep waters to restore the population of the European native oyster, Ostrea edulis, along England's northeast coast.

Britain is deploying concrete reef cubes and scallop shells to revive native oyster populations. These structures aim to provide essential hard surfaces for young oysters to…

While one might assume that lowering huge white blocks of concrete into the sea was an attempt at dumping construction waste offshore, in Britain's North Sea it is a conservation…