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Man and woman gazing at the camera on the beach wearing Tombolo x Billion Oyster Project shirts in linen and terry cloth

Before dirty water hot dogs and a dirty Hudson River, New York was home to the largest oyster population in the United States...

Tombolo organic cotton terry cloth cabana shirt with embroidered oyster motifs on left breast and right pocket with mesh netting, blue lining and half-zipper against white backdrop.
 
Tombolo organic cotton terry cloth cabana shirt with embroidered oyster motifs on left breast and right pocket with mesh netting, blue lining and half-zipper against white backdrop.
man wearing matching terry cloth oyster shirt with swim trunks looking off into the distance at the beach
man puts hand inside mesh netted oyster pocket
close up of woman wearing terry cloth embroidered oyster shirt holding zipper
Embroidered oyster close up with button in middle
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‘Pearl Diver’ Swim Trunks for Billion Oyster Project
close up of swim trunks loosely lying flat with waistband ties coiled
man wearing full matching oyster set on the beach looking off to his right
close up of back side of shorts as man holds up the waist
back side view of swim trunks with v pocket on white background
Tombolo x Billion oyster project sky blue linen shirt with Oyster on top of middle button and red embroidered Oyster co. logo on left breast, and white lining
 
Tombolo x Billion oyster project sky blue linen shirt with Oyster on top of middle button and red embroidered Oyster co. logo on left breast, and white lining
woman stares at camera wearing Tombolo shirt and man stares at camera wearing blue Tombolo shirt and swim trunks
close up of embroidered oyster on top of middle shirt button
woman closes her eyes wearing the linen shirt with one button done up
close up of inside shirt label with Billion Oyster Project and Tombolo logos
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Hello from New York City on a rainy June day. We have a whole new understanding of days like this after working with Billion Oyster Project on our oyster-themed charity capsule.

We learned that just 1/10th of an inch of rain per hour is enough to overwhelm our woefully-inadequate, 150 year old sewer system, causing something called 'Combined Sewage Overflow' -- in layman's terms, waste water (e.g. the stuff you flush down the toilet) is discharged directly into our rivers and harbor untreated.

We knew our beloved city was dirty, but not that dirty.

woman and man leaning against lifeguard chair in Tombolo oyster themed shirts with ocean in the background

Cue NYC's unlikely hero: oysters. The world's sexiest bivalve is a natural water filter. In fact, an adult oyster can filter 30 gallons of water per day.

Before New York City was known as the 'Big Apple,' it was the 'Big Oyster,' home to the largest oyster population in the United States. Oyster vendors dotted street corners like the dirty water hot dog stands you see today. Sadly, this population of oysters is now functionally extinct in the Harbor due to over-harvesting, dredging, and pollution.

collage of blue and beige Tombolo oyster shirts alongside pictures of oysters in a container

Billion Oyster Project aims to restore the oyster reefs that covered more than 220,000 acres of the Hudson River. The oyster's reputation as an "ecosystem engineer,” along with the history of New York Harbor as an oyster haven drives the organization to restore the harbor to its former ecological glory. The reefs filter water, provide a habitat for other marine species, and reduce wave energy to protect against storm surge.

And it's working. Believe it or not, one reef site in Williamsburg is now home to a thriving colony of seahorses.

collage of close ups of the oyster shirt focusing on the zipper, embroidered oyster shell motif on the left breast, and embroidered oysters in netting on the left pocket to symbolize a bag

Founded in 2014 as a project by the Harbor School on Governor’s Island, Billion Oyster Project is a collaborative effort between educators, scientists, students, and community members with a mission to restore one billion oysters to New York Harbor by 2035. This ambitious undertaking involves a multifaceted approach that combines education, reef construction, and monitoring.

Photos of the Billion Oyster Project volunteers arranging oysters

To support oyster growth and create a sustainable habitat, the project constructs artificial reefs using discarded oyster shells. These structures provide a substrate for oyster larvae (called 'spat') to attach and grow, creating new oyster populations in areas where they had disappeared. The reefs also enhance biodiversity by attracting various marine species and improving water quality through the oysters' natural filtration process.

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The Billion Oyster Project is a remarkable testament to the power of collective action and community engagement in ecological restoration.

They have 18 active restoration sites across NYC, have collected 2+ million pounds of recycled shell, and are setting 50 million oysters per season into NYC's local waterways.

Tombolo team on their visit to governor's island to tour the Billion Oyster Project facilities, standing in front of a mountain of oyster shells

The Tombolo team visited Billion Oyster Project's Governor's Island HQ in advance of the collaboration (thank you, Jessi, for being such a wonderful tour guide!).

We toured the Harbor School (and wished we could have attended as students), trudged around gargantuan piles of donated shells (no pearls found sadly), and learned about the process of building a new reef site (labor intensive!).

For the capsule's launch month of June 2023, Tombolo donated 100% of proceeds from this capsule to Billion Oyster Project, raising over $60k to support the reintroduction of oysters to New York Harbor.

From July 2023 onwards, Tombolo has continued to donate 15% of all proceeds from this capsule, bringing the total donations since launch to $150,000 as of 2025.

Want to get your hands dirty and volunteer? Sign up!

Tombolo's shirts with a cause:

Short-sleeve button-up shirt featuring a bold, all-over print of stylized ocean waves and green-yellow fish on fishing lines. The background is off-white, while the design includes vivid shades of blue, green, orange, and red. The shirt has a camp collar and brown buttons down the front.
 
Short-sleeve button-up shirt featuring a bold, all-over print of stylized ocean waves and green-yellow fish on fishing lines. The background is off-white, while the design includes vivid shades of blue, green, orange, and red. The shirt has a camp collar and brown buttons down the front.
A man with wavy brown hair and a mustache sits on the edge of a boat, wearing a vibrant short-sleeve button-up shirt with a fishing-themed print featuring leaping fish and swirling ocean waves in blue, green, yellow, and red (Our 'Perfect Cast' Shirt). He pairs it with navy shorts that have white embroidered trim. He holds sunglasses in one hand and gazes toward the right.
The same male model with longer hair and a mustache is staring into the camera, wearing our patterned 'Perfect Cast' Shirt and a pair of sunglasses are strapped around his neck.
Detailed shot of the 'Perfect Cast' pattern featuring a yellow and green fish that appears to be jumping out of the water.
A man with wavy brown hair and a mustache sits on the edge of a boat, wearing a vibrant short-sleeve button-up shirt with a fishing-themed print featuring leaping fish and swirling ocean waves in blue, green, yellow, and red (Our 'Perfect Cast' Shirt). He pairs it with navy shorts that have white embroidered trim.
Tombolo organic cotton terry cloth cabana shirt with embroidered oyster motifs on left breast and right pocket with mesh netting, blue lining and half-zipper against white backdrop.
 
Tombolo organic cotton terry cloth cabana shirt with embroidered oyster motifs on left breast and right pocket with mesh netting, blue lining and half-zipper against white backdrop.
man wearing matching terry cloth oyster shirt with swim trunks looking off into the distance at the beach
man puts hand inside mesh netted oyster pocket
close up of woman wearing terry cloth embroidered oyster shirt holding zipper
Embroidered oyster close up with button in middle
Slide image
 
‘Pearl Diver’ Swim Trunks for Billion Oyster Project
close up of swim trunks loosely lying flat with waistband ties coiled
man wearing full matching oyster set on the beach looking off to his right
close up of back side of shorts as man holds up the waist
back side view of swim trunks with v pocket on white background
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'DSNY x Tombolo' Sweater
Man stands on step with woman beneath him
Man and woman stand side by side
Portrait of man in DSNY hat
Man and woman sitting on steps of DSNY truck
Front lay flat view of DSNY x Tombolo cabana with forest green accents on a mostly white shirt
 
Front lay flat view of DSNY x Tombolo cabana with forest green accents on a mostly white shirt
Male model in the DSNY cabana and matching shorts and hat looking left while female model looks up at him
Female model in dsny cabana next to male model in dsny hawaiian and hat
Male model in cabana looking down at female model sitting in chair
Male model holding unzipped cabana above his shoulders while still on, back view
Tombolo DSNY terry cloth shorts in green
 
Tombolo DSNY terry cloth shorts in green
Unbuttoned and untied DSNY shorts with white drawstrings and DSNY logo
Man wearing full DSNY terry cloth set holds binoculars and stares at woman reading brochure
Man wears full terry cloth set and leans agaiinst Department of sanitation car while woman smiles in driver's seat
Back of terry cloth shorts with white piping V slit pocket