When was the last time anyone associated delicious oysters with New York City's waters? It was well before our lifetime, points out Kate Orff of SCAPE. Yet her team proposes that the mollusks, a staple in the Big Apple until dirty water killed them off, could be brought back as super heroes that could save our boroughs.

The architects propose starting oyster farms in New York's waterways, including Brooklyn's disastrous Gowanus Canal. Over time, the growing colonies would form natural reefs that would soften destructive waves and storm surge. The architects also note that oysters are mini-water purification systems, with each one capable of filtering 30 to 50 gallons of water each day. So the bivalves would help clean New York's polluted waters, and in a decade or two they might even be safe for human consumption.