Florida
Artificial reef programs surge forward despite economy
October 2, 2009
www.tcpalm.com
Amongst scores of boats on a back lot at American Custom Yachts, one vessel is undergoing a dramatic makeover.
Read the full article
here.
Students Build Artificial Reef Balls
August 24, 2009
www.wjhg.com
Eleven miles off Jacksonville's shore, large fabricated
reef balls are placed at the bottom of the ocean. The artificial reef will soon become a great home for fish and other marine life.
Read the full article
here.
The "Red Sea" Lands on the Bottom of the Gulf
June 25, 2009
www.wjhg.com
Deep sea divers have a new artificial reef to explore after the
125-foot "Red Sea" Tugboat was dropped to the bottom of the Gulf this
morning.
Read the full article
here.
Artificial Reefs Gain Popularity
June 24, 2009
www.healthnewsdigest.com
(HealthNewsDigest.com) - Artificial reefs are becoming more widely
accepted as environmentally friendly havens for scuba divers, and the
movement just received a major shot in the arm with the recent
establishment of the second largest artificial reef in Key West, FL,
according to one expert.
Read the full article
here.
Glug, Glug, Glug; Tug to become new reef
June 24, 2009
www.newsherald.com
PANAMA CITY - The 125-foot tugboat Red Sea will begin its final voyage
today to become an artificial reef off the Panama City coast, the first
shallow-water sinking here since 1995.
Read the full article
here.
Building a snorkeler's sanctuary
June 15, 2009
www.pnj.com
Navarre resident Brenda Stokes called the underwater environs around the quieted pier "a wonderland."
Read the full article
here.
Concrete reefs returning to ocean floor off First Coast
June 15, 2009
www.jacksonville.com
A project to seed the ocean floor with artificial reefs should return to Northeast Florida this summer.
Read the full article
here.
Down she goes: Ship becomes artificial reef near Deerfield Beach
June 06, 2009
www.palmbeachpost.com
Hundreds of people looked on and cheered today as the Miss Lourdies, a
167-foot-long freighter, was sunk just after 12 p.m. to create an
artificial reef a mile southeast of Boca Raton Inlet, near the
Deerfield Beach and Boca Raton border.
Read the full article
here.
Artificial reef projects benefit entire community
June 03, 2009
www.pnj.com
There is power in unity. County boundaries should not represent refuges
of political turf-guarding when it comes to broader issues that benefit
an entire community. Those include tourism, environment quality,
economic expansion, education, highways and other quality-of-life tools
that help sustain a vibrant, expanding economy without the headaches of
petty jealousies and politicians too narrowly focused.
Read the full article
here.
USS Vandenberg Sunk Using Explosives to Form Artificial Reef Off Key West
May 27, 2009
www.foxnews.com
KEY WEST, Fla. A ship last used by the U.S. Air Force to track missiles
and spacecraft became the world's second-largest intentionally sunk
artificial reef Wednesday.
Read the full article
here.
New Smyrna requests reef study
May 21, 2009
www.tcpalm.com
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- City officials
are willing to test the waters, but want some swim buddies before they jump into
the deep end of a proposal to put an artificial reef offshore.
Read the full article
here.
New artificial reefs to be sunk this summer north of Fort Pierce Inlet
May 14, 2009
www.tcpalm.com
FORT PIERCE Fishermen and divers can explore new
artificial reefs this summer north of the Fort Pierce Inlet.
Read the full article
here.
Navarre Beach wants to be "snorkelicious"
May 13, 2009
www.pnj.com
It's been more than 10 years in the making. Now the effort to build the Navarre
Beach Marine Sanctuary is making progress.
Read the full article
here.
Ship headed to new Florida home, will be a reef
April 12, 2009
www.miamiherald.com
NORFOLK, Va. -- After several delays, the
Vandenberg
ship has finally left for Key West, one of the last steps in a 13-year
process to create the newest artificial reef in the Florida Keys
National Marine Sanctuary. Officials say the 1,100-mile voyage should
take about eight days. The vessel departed on Sunday.
Read the full article
here.
Artificial reef coming, so is algae bloom
April 10, 2009
www.jaxdailyrecord.com
The Jacksonville Waterways Commission didn't have enough members
present for Thursday's meeting to meet a quorum, therefore nothing was
voted on. However, the Commission did hear about two items that affect
the entire area - one that will boost the local fishing for decades to
come, one that may be a bad omen for the St. Johns River this summer.
Read the full article
here.
Manatee County slashes impact fees for roads
April 8, 2009
www.heraldtribune.com
MANATEE COUNTY - MANATEE COUNTY -- With a 50 percent reduction in
impact fees for roads enacted Tuesday, Manatee County joined numerous
other local governments that are trying to spur development by reducing
the fees.
Read the full article
here.
Luxury boats abandoned on US coastline
April 8, 2009
www.insurancedaily.co.uk
Luxury yachts are being beached or sunk around the US coastline as
their owners make fraudulent insurance claims. A growing number of
dumped boats are clogging the water around the coast of states such as
Florida, according to a report in The New York Times.
Read the full article
here.
Nearshore reef zones a reality
April 8, 2009
www.pnj.com
The Army Corps of Engineers and Florida Department of Environmental
Protection have approved permits for two new artificial reef zones just
outside of Pensacola Pass.
Read the full article
here.
State mulls permit ban
April 4, 2009
keysnews.com
Permit, tarpon and bonefish are the Triple Crown of Florida Keys
backcountry fishing. Of the three, only permit are edible and found
offshore, making them most at risk for overfishing.
Read the full article
here.
Grouper and Snapper Restrictions Set
March 31, 2009
www.floridasportsman.com
NOAA's regional administrator Roy Crabtree confirmed upcoming closed
seasons for vermilion snapper and a host of shallow-water groupers as
part of Amendment 16, in a letter to Chairman Duane Harris of the South
Atlantic Fishery Management Council.
Read the full article
here.
Deerfield Beach reef to lure tourists and fish
March 12, 2009
www.sun-sentinel.com
When U.S. Customs confiscated
Miss Lourdies and anchored
it on the Miami River, it was because the ship had 150 kilos of cocaine
concealed inside a steel compartment. The way it was pitched at a
District 1 meeting last month, however, the vessel would be reborn as
an artificial reef and this area's own economic stimulus package.
Read the full article
here.
Board considers artificial beach reef
March 11, 2009
www.news-journalonline.com
Bags of sand on the ocean floor might prevent erosion of Volusia
County's beaches. The solution was proposed Tuesday by John Hearin of
ASR American Engineering, a New Zealand-based company that makes
artificial reefs out of 20-ton bags of sand.
Read the full article
here.
New Study Confirms RFA's Claims on Red Snapper Abundance
March 4, 2009
www.flyrodreel.com
A new study released by Dr. Robert Shipp and Dr. Steve Bortone reveals
that the Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper stock may be at a higher level of
abundance than estimated by National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
Read the full article
here.
Bay County Artificial Reef Project Underway
February 25, 2009
www.wjhg.com
Tourism is this area's biggest industry, and a series of upcoming
projects could give Bay County a real shot in the arm. In fact, county
officials are hoping the projects will attract a greater share of
recreational diving and sport fishing dollars.
Read the full article
here.
County to hold public meeting on reef project
February 22, 2009
www.newsherald.com
Divers, fishermen and others with an interest in marine life will have
an opportunity to learn more about Bay County's artificial reef project
this Tuesday at Gulf Coast Community College.
Read the full article
here.
Sink it: Reef group wants barge submerged
February 19, 2009
www.nwfdailynews.com
Having a boat sink is usually a bad thing, but the Emerald Coast Reef
Association is working hard to see that a massive 345-foot barge is
sunk in the state waters off Okaloosa County.
Read the full article
here.
Legal Issues Cleared As Vandenberg Moves To Shipyard For Final Cleanup Before Sinking Off Key West
February 6, 2009
www.underwatertimes.com
After an almost nine-month stall, a Key West artificial reef project is back on course, after tugboats shifted the 524-foot
Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg 1/8-mile from Colonna's Shipyard to W3 Marine Friday morning.
Read the full article
here.
Palm Beach County Commission vote on ramp fees could pit boaters vs. reefs
February 2, 2009
www.palmbeachpost.com
Marine industry leaders made a last-minute proposal today in hopes of
scuttling Palm Beach County's plan to charge boaters to park their
trailers at county boat ramps.
Read the full article
here.
Revamp of FPL's Riviera plant could snarl Palm Beach County's reef efforts
January 26, 2009
www.palmbeachpost.com
Florida Power and Light's plan to revamp its Rivera Beach power plant
could throw a wrench into Palm Beach County's efforts to create
artificial reefs off its coast.
Read the full article
here.
Collier wins grant bid for artificial reef
January 23, 2009
www.news-press.com
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation and Commission has awarded
the Collier County Coastal Zone Management Department $60,000 in grant
funds to pay for implementing a new artificial reef along the Gulf
coast.
Read the full article
here.
Artificial reefs bring big fish, big dollars
Travis Griggs
January 23, 2009
www.pnj.com
The pristine white sand may do wonders for attracting tourists to the
Gulf Coast, but beneath the surface the Emerald Coast that sand doesn't
hold the same appeal for sea life.
Read the full article
here.
Venomous, Voracious, Non-native Lionfish Turns Up In Florida Keys
January 20, 2009
www.fieldandstream.com
A beautiful and venomous non-native fish has made its way to the Keys,
and the question is whether the species will move north and invade
local artificial reefs.
Read the full article
here.
'Vandy' money could forestall auction
Sean Kinney
December 10, 2008
keysnet.com
The Key West Commission hopes to approve two agreements Thursday that
could trigger $2.6 million in state funding as a last-ditch effort to
save the
USS Hoyt Vandenberg from the auction block.
Read the full article
here.
Vandenberg money hinges on contract
Sean Kinney
November 14, 2008
KeysNet.com
Key West city officials have been banking on $1.6 million from the state to keep the
Vandenberg artificial reef project afloat, but despite cheers from local officials that the deal is done, that's not yet the case.
Read the full article
here.
KEYS VANDENBERG ARTIFICIAL REEF PROJECT SHOULD MOVE FORWARD
November 11, 2008
www.fla-keys.com
The State of Florida is poised to contribute up to $1.6 million to
satisfy a shipyard lien so a 524-foot decommissioned Air Force missile
tracking vessel can be scuttled as an artificial reef off the Florida
Keys, Key West officials said Tuesday.
Read the full article
here.
As Oriskany sinks further, divers risk going deeper
November 5, 2008
Rebekah Allen
Pensacola News Journel
Diving the
Oriskany was the clincher for New York
resident Bradley Gaiser. At 135 feet, the sunken aircraft carrier's
flight deck was already five feet outside the recreational diving
limit, but instructors said it was still relatively safe for tempted
divers to make the touch.
Read the full article
here.
Veterans of USS Rankin reunite in Stuart
Alex Tiegen
November 1, 2008
TCPalm
Like the other veterans aboard the
Lady Stuart II
Friday, Melvin Munch had hoped to visit the attack cargo ship that
served as their temporary home and workplace and now rests on the ocean
floor off the coast of Stuart.
Read the full article
here.
Ghost Fleet ship meant for Florida reef to be sold
October 31, 2008
Tim McGlone
The Virginia-Pilot
A federal judge has ordered the sale of a former James River Reserve
Fleet ship after a contractor failed to pay for the clean up of the
vessel. The city could lose ownership because of more than $1.6 million
in unpaid bills owed to Colonna's Shipyard in Norfolk, which cleaned
the ship and made it ready for scuttling. Other subcontractors say they
haven't been paid hundreds of thousands more.
Read the full article
here.
Reach 8 hearing resumes Monday
Monday, September 29, 2008
WILLIAM KELLY
Daily News Staff Writer
After a three-week recess, the town faces off again this week with
petitioners who seek to halt plans to reconstruct an eroded South End
beach.
Administrative Law Judge R.E. Meale is presiding over the Florida
Department of Environmental Protection hearing. It resumes at 9 a.m.
Monday in the town's Emergency Operations Center on the third floor of
the central fire station, and is open to the public.
Dr. Richard Weisskoff, an associate professor who teaches economics in
the School of International Studies at the University of Miami, is the
last expert witness for the petitioners.
Read the full article
here.
Probe in FL boat fire
(September 28, 2008)
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Sep. 28--Fire marshals are investigating a fire on a boat being used to build an artificial reef in the Hillsboro Inlet.
Jack Holland, chairman of the Hillsboro Inlet District, said delays in the project are due more to weather than loss of a boat.
Gary Fernaays, assistant chief of Deerfield Beach Fire Rescue, said his
department responded at about midnight Sept. 11 with two engines and
three other vehicles. For two and a half hours, some 13 personnel
pumped water into the 40-foot tug, but the fire damaged the galley area
and living quarters.
Read the full article
here.