StructureSpot

StructureSpot

Category: Fishing

What else needs to be said? Everything fishing is here, from techniques to tackle, hotspots to secrets and all things in between. Send your fishing pics and tell the story behjind it. Was it caught on structure, or open water? What were the weather conditions? From Crappie and bass, to walleye and muskie, we fish for it and you can find it here.

Artifical Products grow fish

Posted on by david

First Coast may need to help bolster key industry – fishing

 First Coast anglers see fishing spots disappearing so quickly they say it’s time to create new fishing grounds to bolster an industry that the state says brings half a billion dollars into the local economy every year.
Scott Shine, a member of the Jacksonville Waterways Commission, said he is looking into ways to add more access to fishing in North Florida before the economic impact does permanent damage to the recreational fishing industry.
A Waterways Commission subcommittee has been formed to examine adding artificial reefs just offshore and in the St. Johns River.
See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in proven science based, fish protection.
The federal government has closed several offshore fishing spots in recent years because of depleted fish stocks. There are also large tracts of water that have been placed off limits to vessels around military installations for security reasons.
“While we grow and while we’re seeking opportunities for tourism, we’re not growing our access to waterways on the same level that we’re experiencing in the growth in population,” Shine said.
RestrictionsThe recent restrictions cover hundreds of miles of ocean off the Southeast coast of the United States. Along the First Coast, those restrictions are hampering an industry that generates about $556 million a year for Northeast Florida, according to a report Shine drafted in January based on a 2010 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation analysis.
Shine based his figures on the North Florida share of fishing licenses sold in the state along with other factors, such as fishing industry tracking data the state agency used to develop estimates.
Recent federal regulations restricting offshore catches of grouper, red snapper and other fish are already beginning to take their toll on the area recreational fishing industry.
“We’ve been losing ground,” said Vic Tison, who runs a charter boat fishing service and is chairman of the North Florida Chapter of the Recreational Fishing Alliance. “We’re getting less and less areas to fish. Where’s that going to leave us?”
Adding to the frustration for anglers is a restricted zone instituted around Mayport Naval Station last year.
With little public notice, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers added a 380-foot no-vessel zone on a 2½-mile stretch of water surrounding the base.
Tison said it has already blocked many of his charter excursions that used to sail near the base.
Roy Crabtree, the Southeast regional administrator for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, said the agency takes into account the economic impact when implementing restrictions. In addition, Crabtree said recreational and commercial fishing interests were represented on the panel that made the decisions.
SolutionsWhile Shine concedes there is little sports anglers can do about the restrictions, he thinks the problem can be mitigated by creating new areas for fishing.
He said creating artificial reefs within 3 miles of shore would put those waters under state jurisdiction, cutting the federal government out of the equation. In addition, Shine wants artificial reefs to be sunk in the St. Johns River near the Mill Cove area in order to offset the restricted zones around the Mayport base and Blount Island.
“It increases access to fishing opportunities,” Shine said. “The federal government is drawing boxes on a map that are shutting down fishing and access in those areas.”
Crabtree said Shine’s proposal could provide some increased access in the face of the federal restrictions.
“If they were to put artificial reefs in state waters over there, that may provide access in fishing for anglers of a variety of species,” he said.
Tison acknowledged Shine’s proposals could keep the recreational fishing economy stable.
“It’s very important,” he said. “We’re getting less and less areas to fish continually. … Anytime you put a rock down or a structure down in the water, it’s going to create fishing habitat, and that gives the anglers more areas to fish.”

By Matt Dixon 
Morris News Service

Volunteers brave the cold to create fish habitat

Posted on by david

A large group of volunteers braved the bitter cold on Saturday, February 25, to anchor 400 live-cut Christmas trees to the bed of Tygart Lake. Volunteers from the WVU Fishing Club joined with the regulars from Grafton Boy Scout Troop #6 and the Save The Tygart Watershed Association. Volunteer Ashley Akers zip-ties a tree to a concrete block, this was just one of 400 trees that were anchored in Tygart Lake on Saturday, February 25. Volunteer Ben Flohr heaves one of the trees down over the hill to the staging area below.

GRAFTON — A large group of volunteers faced the bitter cold Saturday morning as they gathered at Tygart Lake to anchor recycled live-cut Christmas trees for future fish habitat.

The program started in 2007, as the United States Army Corps of Engineers at Tygart Lake sent out the call for Christmas trees in December. Each year since, the number of donated trees, and the number of volunteers to anchor them, has grown substantially.

See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in proven science based, fish protection.

Residents are encouraged each year to drop their live-cut Christmas trees off at the Grafton City Garage after the holiday season. The city then transports the donated trees to the lake, where they are distributed by volunteers.

“This has been a record year for trees and for volunteers,” stated April Hawkey, Tygart Lake Corps of Engineers Park Ranger. “I had an assistant from WVU (West Virginia University) hand out fliers on campus for volunteers. The WVU Fishing Club called and asked ‘how many people do you need?’ that was great, in calling for volunteers, you never know just how many you will get.”

Hawkey stated that 15 volunteers from the club came out to assist with the effort. Along with the fishing club, regular volunteers, who have made this a regular project since the beginning, showed up in force. These regulars are from Boy Scout Troop #6 from Grafton, and the Save The Tygart Watershed Association.

In all, 45 volunteers helped place the trees near the site of last year’s donations.

During what was obviously one of the coldest mornings in February, these brave volunteers met for orientation at the Corps Park Office at 9 a.m.

From there they traveled down to the gravel lot launching area where 400 donated trees awaited. Each tree had to be anchored to concrete blocks strategically located to put the trees about15-20 feet underwater at summer pool levels. Each tree had to be drilled at its base to allow for the zip tie used to attach it to the block.

Volunteers arrived to find the trees awaiting at the top of the launching area. Together they threw, rolled and dragged the trees down over the hill to the staging area below. With Fish Attractor buoys attached, anglers will know where to go to take advantage of these efforts.

The donated trees are anchored along the Tygart Lake shoreline in February, while the lake level is low, so that when the lake returns to its summer levels the trees act as artificial reefs, providing advanced habitat for the lake’s fish and improved fishing opportunities for anglers. Once secured on the lake bottom, the Christmas trees provide shade and a hiding place for fish.

As Hawkey ran the crew up top, making many journeys up and down the steep hill, US Army Corps of Engineers Tygart Lake Resource Manager, Mike Estock handled the efforts down the hill at the staging area.

The success of this program has been noted in various fishing publications. One such mention comes from an April 25, 2010 report at sportfisherman.com, which expands upon the success of the project. “The lake (Tygart) is near the summer pool level. Target largemouth and smallmouth bass by casting crankbaits along the shoreline. Crappie are now concentrated around Christmas tree fish attractors. There are lots of walleye and trout in the tailwater and this is the best place in northern West Virginia to fish for them.”

Trees were donated by Lowe’s, Home Depot, Barbour County, and the cities of Grafton, Nutterfort and Morgantown. The Corps’ staff at Tygart Lake would like to thank those who donated the trees, WV DNR for their cooperation, and all of the volunteers for assisting in the construction of the fish attractor.

After the event, all of the volunteers were treated to pizza. Hawkey also stated that a volunteer appreciation day is in the works, for everyone who helps make Tygart Lake State Park a wonderful place to visit.BY: Matt Trout

Pier’s success provided by artificial reefs for fish

Posted on by david

Transition from old Twin Spans to Slidell Fishing Pier almost done

Slidell, LA —  St. Tammany leaders are now targeting late April for the opening of the Slidell Fishing Pier.  The wooden bridge leading to the old Twin Span bridge is done, and the early reviews are good.

“I think it came out a lot better than I expected even,” St. Tammany Parish Councilman Richie Artigue said.  Artigue predicted the pier will get a lot of use once it opens.See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

It was originally conceived by former Parish President Kevin Davis, as a way to use part of the old bridge as a Pensacola-style fishing pier.  The wooden bridge includes two gazebos.

“This is going to be one of the best things parish government ever did for the people of the parish, Councilman Artigue added.  “We’ve got many, many people who don’t have boats, can’t go out fishing.  This is going to be the place for people to bring their families, bring their kids, and come out here and catch a fish.”

The delay comes because it took longer than expected to run utilities, water, sewage and electricity.

“If anything,” St. Tammany Parish Spokesperson Suzanne Parsons-Stymiest said, “the last couple of months, when we had to postpone the opening from the original date, has really enforced for us how much the public wants this.”

Eventually, the fishing pier will include 24-hour security and lighting.  To pay for those services, people fishing should expect to pay a fee, perhaps in the neighborhood of $5, according to parish leaders.

“We want it to be clean, we want it to be lit, we want security,” Suzanne Parsons-Stymiest added.  “We want the availability of amenities such as a bait shop, so that fee is going to be put directly back into the operation of the fishing pier.”

All of that, as well as a bait shop and a restaurant will be in place “eventually” parish leaders said Monday, although perhaps not on opening day.

Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries agents dropped hunks of concrete into Lake Pontchartrain near the pier, to create artificial reefs for fish.  And that’s the bottom line for why parish leaders believe the pier will be successful, because fishing experts say, fish will be plentiful under the pier.Doug Mouton / Northshore Bureau Chief
Email: dmouton@wwltv.com | Twitter: @dmoutonwwl

B.A.S.S. Summit Awards Fishiding Artificial Fish Habitat

Posted on by david

Conservation Summit Emphasizes Fisheries Management  

SHREVEPORT, La. — B.A.S.S. will renew an old tradition at this year’s Bassmaster Classic, when it plays host to a 2 ½-day Conservation Summit.

“See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection. This something that I promised to do when I came back to B.A.S.S. last year,” said National Conservation Director Noreen Clough, who added that she is “very excited to bring back an historic event unique to B.A.S.S. Conservation.”
Federation Nation conservation directors, state fisheries managers, academics, “and other notables in fisheries and aquatic resource conservation” will attend.
An inaugural Fisheries Management Workshop on Saturday will be one of the summit’s highlights, as will a keynote address by Jim Martin, Berkley Conservation Institute director, at Saturday night’s awards banquet. Martin also will give closing comments on Sunday.
“Jim is a great partner with B.A.S.S. and an awesome motivational speaker in the conservation world,” Clough said.
Saturday’s workshop will feature Dr. Mike Allen from the University of Florida, Dr. David Philipp from the University of Illinois, and Gene Gilliland from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, three of the nation’s foremost experts on fisheries management.
“We’ve been able to bring together fisheries scientists from universities and states around the country to share with us the latest in black bass management,” said Clough.
Among other topics, Philipp will provide “the Northern perspective” on fishing for nesting bass, and Allen will offer the Southern perspective. Gilliland will talk about tournament mortality issues, catch-and-release impacts on growth, and advances in techniques and tools, including the Alabama Rig.
Conservation directors also will learn about trends in fish culture and stocking, illegal stocking, and spatial patterns in bass habitat use and angling. They then will move to breakout sessions to discuss management and science/outreach needs for bass fisheries.
Following a welcome from B.A.S.S. co-owner Jim Copeland, Friday’s agenda will feature mentoring sessions, legislative updates, and news from the conservation directors. The latter will include the latest on ReBaits, the popular program initiated by Florida’s Eamon Bolten to encourage anglers to recycle or properly dispose of their used plastic baits.
Gordon Robertson, vice-president of the American Sportfishing Association, and Chris Horton, mid-states coordinator for the Assembly of State Caucuses, will discuss federal and state legislation related to fisheries, as well as offer insights about working with legislators and getting involved politically.
Allen and Dr. Mike Netherland from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will discuss aquatic vegetation management and related issues, including the likelihood that herbicide application changes the behavior of fish.

Sunday’s half-day program will offer insights on how to partner with state agencies from a panel of fisheries chief, a look at the process behind fisheries management from Gilliland, and federal updates on the 75th anniversary of the Sport Fish Restoration Program (Wallop-Breaux) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fisheries program.

Largest man-made reef in the world protects fish habitat

Posted on by david

Anglers have high hopes for debate over value of artificial structure

A motion made at the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council meeting last week in Mobile, Alabama, could be the first step to protecting what has been regarded as the largest man-made reef in the world – the vast forest of energy-related structures in the offshore waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Dr. Bob Shipp’s request to have Council staff clarify the definition of what qualifies as artificial structure could pave the way for rigs and other vital reefs to be classified as Essential Fish Habitat.

“For anglers who have been greatly concerned about the impact of this Administration’s directive to summarily remove all non-producing energy structures, this is a very welcome development,” said Pat Murray, president of Coastal Conservation Association. “This is a chance for the Gulf Council and NOAA Fisheries to take a stand to protect that habitat, and we are grateful to Dr. Shipp for presenting this opportunity.” See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

In a misdirected response to the Gulf oil spill, the U.S. Department of Interior issued a directive in October of 2010 ordering that all non-producing rigs be plugged and any remaining structure removed within five years of the issuance of that directive. There are approximately 3,500 offshore structures in the Gulf of Mexico and the directive, known as the Idle Iron Policy, would immediately impact roughly 650 structures that have not produced oil or gas within five years of the directive issue date of Oct. 15, 2010.

“Anglers have already noted with alarm the disappearance of some rigs that have been in place for years – sometimes decades – that provided the base for flourishing ecosystems,” said Murray. “It is a completely avoidable tragedy, and we hope that the Council and NOAA Fisheries will do what it can to halt this needless destruction.”

Sen. David Vitter (R-La) and Rep. Steve Palazzo (R-Ms) have filed legislation that would prevent rigs and other structures from being summarily removed from the Gulf of Mexico, but both bills face a difficult road through the current Congress. A decision by NOAA Fisheries to declare artificial structures Essential Fish Habitat would be a significant addition to legislative efforts.

In 2009, Dr. Shipp and Stephen Bortone published a paper on the importance of artificial noaa

red vsnapper

habitat on the management of red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico which credits the deployment of energy structures in the mid-20th century for greatly increasing the harvest potential of red snapper.

“If the habitat limitation hypothesis is correct, and I believe it is, then it would be necessary to maintain or even increase the amount of artificial habitat in the northern Gulf of Mexico to keep pace with fishing pressure,” said Dr. Shipp. “Taking it out makes no sense whatsoever.”

To learn more about this issue, visit the Rigs to Reefs page on the CCA website, www.JoinCCA.org.

###

CCA is the largest marine resource conservation group of its kind in the nation. With almost 100,000 members in 17 state chapters, CCA has been active in state, national and international fisheries management issues since 1977. For more information visit the CCA Newsroom at www.JoinCCA.org.

Sturgeon habitat endangered as well as fish

Posted on by david

Atlantic sturgeon added to endangered species list

Illegal to catch, sturgeon get more federal protection

The Atlantic sturgeon, one of the world’s oldest surviving species of fish, became the newest addition to the federally protected endangered species list last week, a designation that could lead to additional protections for the fish’s habitat.

Sturgeon have been illegal to fish or keep since 1998, but dangers still remain, including unintended catching, dams that block spawning zones, poor water quality, dredging of spawning areas and vessel strikes.

See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

The National Marine Fisheries Service, a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, declared the Chesapeake Bay, New York Bight, Carolina and South Atlantic sturgeon subspecies of Atlantic sturgeon as endangered. The Gulf of Maine sturgeon was listed as threatened.

A federal study of the fish in 2007 revealed populations far below historic levels. Before 1890, an estimated 180,000 adult female sturgeon spawned in the Delaware River. Today, that total is believed to be fewer than 300, according to NOAA. Historically known to spawn in 38 rivers along the Atlantic coast, today sturgeon spawn in only 20 of those rivers.

The designation followed a fall 2009 petition from the Natural Resources Defense Council.

NOAA determined the petition had merit in January 2010 and proposed that in October 2010 the species be listed as endangered. The agency held six public hearings and received comments from 119 people or organizations, some of which opposed the designation.

“The Atlantic sturgeon survived the Ice Age but is now threatened with extinction,” council senior attorney Brad Sewell said in a release. “Despite a more than decade-old ban on fishing for the sturgeon, a host of other threats — including ongoing catch in other fisheries, habitat damage, pollution and the growing effects of climate change — have proved too challenging for the species to recover. By recognizing the fish’s endangered status, the federal government is giving this remarkable fish a fighting chance to live on into the 21st century.”

Harvested since the 1870s for their caviar, Atlantic sturgeon can live past 60 years, grow to 14 feet and weigh 800 pounds, according to the release.

Technically a bony fish, the sturgeon also share many characteristics with sharks and fin fish, said David Secor, a fisheries biologist at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory in Solomons.

“They really are amazing looking fish,” he said.

Though the fish have not spawned in state waters for decades, it is known to still reproduce in the James River in Virginia and travel north into the bay and is sometimes found, though rarely, in the Patuxent and Potomac rivers, Secor said.

“Many in the Chesapeake are visiting from other rivers and states,” he added. “They tend to be fairly far-flung.”

The primary threats to Atlantic sturgeon are fisheries, where the fish can get caught up in nets and end up as part of the harvest’s bycatch, or unintentional catch. Listing the fish as an endangered species could help reduce the number of sturgeon killed in commercial nets, Secor said.

“Sturgeon tend to poke their noses into all kinds of nets,” including gill and pound nets and even crab pots, Secor said

The designation could affect the monk fish and dogfish fisheries in particular, he added.

Secor said the designation “maybe was warranted” since bycatching is such a threat to the species, but as a part of the current efforts to restore the Atlantic sturgeon population, he described himself as “ambivalent” about the listing.

He said the ban on fishing sturgeon has been effective and that there is evidence the fish’s numbers are rebounding in the Hudson River in eastern New York and rivers throughout New England.

“South of the Chesapeake, it’s not looking too good,” Secor said.

But he called the Atlantic sturgeon a “resistant species,” as evidenced by their prehistoric descendants.

“I like to think they swam with dinosaurs,” he said.

The good news for the Atlantic sturgeon is that “they are all over the place,” Secor said.

But the bad news is that water quality in the Chesapeake Bay is so poor that the oxygen-hungry fish has a very hard time surviving there. Secor described the Atlantic sturgeon as one of the “most sensitive species of fish to low oxygen.”

jnewman@somdnews.com

25% of the fry in the lake lost to mechanical weed harvesting

Posted on by david

J. Aquat. Plant Manage. 37: 34-36
Vertebrates Removed by Mechanical Weed
Harvesting in Lake Keesus, Wisconsin
TRAVIS L. BOOMS

INTRODUCTION
Mechanical weed harvesting has been used to control nuisance vegetation in Lake Keesus since 1979.

Fish, turtles,and amphibians often become entangled in the vegetation
and are incidentally removed from the lake while harvesting
weeds. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

Mechanical harvesting removed 2 to 8% of the standing crop of juvenile fish in harvested areas in Saratoga Lake,New York (Mikol 1985) and 32% of the fish population in
harvested areas in Orange Lake, Florida, representing an
estimated replacement value of $6,000 per ha (Haller et al.
1980).

Engel (1990) found mechanical harvesting removed
21,000 to 31,000 fish per year from Lake Halverson, Wisconsin, representing 25% of the fry in the lake. Little other current information has been published concerning aquatic vertebrate removal by mechanical weed harvesting in Wisconsin. Continue reading “25% of the fry in the lake lost to mechanical weed harvesting”

Suspended Spawning Platforms

Posted on by david

See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

https://docs.google.com/a/nmbfn.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=bm1iZm4uY29tfHd3d3xneDo3ZDEyNGI3NDNjYzU3Nzk4

Bluegill habitat moves to artificial products to attract more fish

Posted on by david

Bluegill Habitat

When you go bluegill fishing habitat is one of the key factors on your mind when deciding where to go to find fish to catch. Some bodies of waters are habitat rich with aquatic plants, dead falls, stumps and so on. Other ponds either never had good structures for habitat or they rotted and decomposed long ago. One option is to sink more structures with items from around the house for little or no cost such as old Christmas trees, pallets or scrap wood formed into a 3D design. These structures are great for a while, but they eventually break down or change until they are no longer a desired location for bluegill to gather.

See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

http://www.bluegillworld.com/bluegill-habitat.html

Residents fear shoreline project will smother reef

Posted on by david

Structures a home for sea creatures

Three acres of coquina and worm rock could be covered by a beach renourishment project.
Three acres of coquina and worm rock could be covered by a beach renourishment project. / Photos courtesy of Karen Holloway-Adkins

A new beach renourishment project is in the works for Brevard County, and conservation-minded residents are worried that trucking in the sand will bury a local treasure.

The Brevard County Mid Reach Shore Protection Project aims to dump 573,000 cubic yards of sand onto the 7.8-mile section of beach between Patrick Air Force Base and Indialantic. By adding up to 20 feet of beach, three acres of coquina and worm rock reef will be smothered.

But marine biologist Karen Holloway-Adkins knows the reef is more than just a pile of rocks.

See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

“Worm rock doesn’t get much credit. A lot of people don’t even know what’s out there.” said Holloway-Adkins. “It’s a full-on living reef.”

The large, cauliflower-shaped boulders are not rocks, but the protective sand structures secreted by colonies of bristle worms of the family Sabellariidae (pronounced “SAH—bell—AIR– I—dee”).

But the worms are just a small piece of the reefs’ complexity.

“The algae growing on the reef provides food for turtles and fish.

“The structure is excellent habitat for crabs, blennies, sheepshead, snook, pompano and more,” said Holloway-Adkins, who lives in Indialantic. “I’ve even seen an octopus under one of the ledges.”

Holloway helps run a nonprofit research company, East Coast Biologists, Inc., and was hired by the County to aid in an Environmental Impact Assessment for the project.

Her work revolves specifically around the green sea turtles which feed almost exclusively on the red, green and brown algae growing on the reef. She’s logged countless hours snorkeling the reefs in the Mid Reach zone — when the underwater visibility permits it.

“The juvenile greens will forage and hang around the intertidal zone, sometimes in less than two feet of water.”

The high-energy intertidal zone — the area dappled with small tide pools near shore — is threatened most by the filling project.

“Those pools are important for gamefish,” Holloway-Adkins said. “That’s where you’ll see schools of baby pompano. It’s an important nursery.”

The threat to gamefish and the local ecology has Space Coast fishing authority, Captain Rodney Smith, reeling with concern.

“It’s an extremely unique habitat because this reef is also part of the Indian River Lagoon estuary,” said Smith, a fishing guide for over 20 years and founder of Coastal Angler Magazine. “It’s all connected ecologically. It’s such a treasure.”

Smith conducts guided surf-fishing clinics and recognizes the significance of the reefs for the recreational fishery. As one who makes his living from the area’s natural splendor, he empathizes with business and home owners who are faced with protecting their assets on the beach.

“Change is definitely difficult,” Smith said. “But the quality of life drops during these projects, the beach as we love it is destroyed and the degradation to the habitat is profound.”

As far as the economics of the fill, Smith would like to see changes in how these projects are carried out. With Florida’s dynamic coastline of shifting sand dunes, replenished beaches can be stripped away by hurricanes and strong storms.

“Millions of taxpayer’s dollars are swept into the ocean in a day,” Smith said.

“It’s like throwing sand into a volcano. We need to reassess how we’re managing our beaches.”

Smith’s wish may somewhat come true.

Mike McGarry, the Beach Project Coordinator for Brevard, says that the Mid Reach project is a one-of-a-kind operation designed by the Army Core of Engineers.

“The Mid Reach project is vastly different from a typical beach renourishment. We’ve made sure a large weight has been placed on the environmental consequences.”

Sand will be harvested offshore, stockpiled in Port Canaveral and placed on the beach by dump truck. There won’t be any rusty pipes snaking through the sand from offshore pumping barges, as in previous filling ventures.

“Less than 10 percent of the rocks in the Mid Reach zone will be covered, allowing 90 percent of the habitat to remain,” McGarry said.

“We don’t discount that there won’t be an impact to the environment, but we’ve taken all the steps possible to minimize that impact.”

To mitigate for any damage to the reef that can’t be avoided, the county and the ACOE have devised an artificial reef system that will be placed in parts of the Mid Reach stretch.

Coquina rocks embedded in concrete-block grids will be laid by crane in 12-15 feet of water — after the fill is completed.

The reef habitat in the Mid Reach zone has been designated as an “Essential Fish Habitat” by the National Marine Fisheries Service, which requires the involved parties to take precautions to ensure the health of the ecosystem, including the design of these ‘mitigation reefs’.

But they’re still not the real, living thing.

And although keeping the surf-side infrastructure intact is vital to the area’s economy, Rodney Smith feels that healthy reefs are a part of our culture that can’t be bought.

“You can’t destroy a natural reef and then try to fix it,” Smith said. “They’re priceless.”

Written by
Matt Badolato
For FLORIDA TODAY
Scroll to Top