Last week the state Department of Environmental Protection recognized a handful of municipalities, businesses, organizations and individuals during a virtual ceremony celebrating recycling efforts throughout New Jersey. Among those honored was Long Beach Township, which won the “Leadership” award for its “innovative voluntary recycling project that diverts oyster and clam shells from restaurants for use in establishing a research oyster reef in Little Egg Harbor Bay.”

A few days a week in the summer months and less frequently in the off-season, the township collects mollusk shells from…