Facing an uncertain future, P.E.I.'s oyster farmers and processors close down for the season

Bruce and Kayla Richard are sending their oyster cages empty to the bottom of the river, not sure when they will see them again, as two oyster diseases continue to take their toll in the river where they make their livelihood. It's pretty depressing, to be honest, because normally whenever you're sinking, you're almost looking forward to raising again and seeing how things grew. Now you're sinking empty gear and there's nothing to look forward to for next year at all. Oysters take three years to grow, so usually the farm would have a mix of first- and second-year oysters to be harvested in the future. But most of their oysters have died here, and they say they can't afford to fill them with new seed imported from the United States that may or may not be disease-resistant. They're just going down empty for now until we find out if the U.S. seed is viable, I guess. They are also wrapping up early for the season here at Leslie Hardy and Sons. The processors say that's because there aren't enough live oysters around. They're hoping the seed from the U.S. will mean better prospects next year if it survives the winter. Well, if it survives, then we can keep the markets going and everybody will have a job and maybe things will go back to normal. Here at the Burley Brothers plant, they are already down five positions with just not enough oysters around to process. The production line is running, but not for long. We're starting to see a lot of people panic, you know, like how are they going to be able to survive the winter? What's going to happen next year? Are they going to, you know, have enough income? Are they going to be able to have enough for EI, for example? So there's a lot of anxiety in the community. Back on the Dock River, Kayla and Bruce Richard will finish up here and then move on to other jobs. Kayla as a resident care worker and Bruce in a boat shop. Emptiness, like it's just... Hope's gone now. The cages are empty. They're going to be empty for the next three years. Are we going to be able to get back into it when it comes back? It's just all unknown. Thousands of cages will be sunk to the bottom of the river, and then the waiting begins. Nancy Russell, CBC News, Alberton.