Forth Marine Hatchery
Coast: Forth Marine Hatchery
Project Background
Building on ten years of marine restoration expertise from the Firth of Forth Lobster Hatchery, which merged with Balanced Horizon in 2025, the Forth Marine Hatchery is dedicated to restoring keystone species such as oysters and lobsters in the Firth of Forth. The project aims to enhance biodiversity, strengthen coastal ecosystems, and provide hands-on experience for the next generation of marine scientists.
Project Need
The European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis), once abundant in the Firth of Forth is now incredibly rare. This keystone species plays a vital role in healthy marine ecosystems, and restoring it is a conservation priority. Currently, efforts to reintroduce native oysters to Scotland’s east coast are constrained by the lack of a dedicated local hatchery. Transporting oysters from the west coast poses serious biosecurity risks, as west coast stock can carry parasites and invasive species. To mitigate this, oysters must undergo intensive manual cleaning, a costly and unsustainable process.
Establishing an east coast hatchery is therefore essential to scaling up restoration efforts safely and effectively.
Project Details
North Berwick and the Firth of Forth
Dedicated to the restoration of keystone marine species
2025
Project Description
The Forth Marine Hatchery is a pioneering aquaculture and conservation facility located near the Firth of Forth, Scotland. Its core mission is to produce European flat oysters for ecological restoration within the Firth of Forth and across Scotland’s east coast. Operating under strict biosecurity protocols, the hatchery will provide healthy, locally-produced oyster stock to help rebuild oyster beds without the risk of cross-coastal contamination.
In 2025, the Forth Marine Hatchery merged with the Firth of Forth Lobster Hatchery, bringing over a decade of restoration experience to the project. As a legacy of that work, we continue its European lobster restoration efforts in East Lothian, supporting the recovery of overfished populations.
The facility will also serve as a centre for environmental education, research, and community engagement, offering hands-on learning opportunities and helping to foster greater public awareness of marine conservation.
Our ultimate vision is the restoration of a thriving European flat oyster population across the Firth of Forth and the wider east coast, creating a resilient, biodiverse marine ecosystem for future generations.
Project Impact
- Restoration of a nearly extinct keystone species in the Firth of Forth.
- Enhanced marine biodiversity and the creation of nursery habitats for fish and other wildlife.
- Improved water quality—each oyster can filter up to 200 litres of water per day.
- Stabilisation of carbon in the marine environment through shell formation and seabed interaction.
- A scalable, biosecurity solution to support future restoration projects across the Scottish east coast.
- Restoration of overfished lobster populations.
- Community benefits through education, volunteering, and citizen science.
20,000 oysters released by 2027
100,000 lobsters released
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