Sunk! Vessels Added to Artificial Reefs CIRCA 1870
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Paul Medders watches as the ships are prepared for deployment.
T
he Georgia DNR added two vessels to reefs approximately 17 east of Ossabaw Island and 22 miles east of St. Catherines Island in early June. “DNR’s Coastal Resources Division (CRD) facilitated the sinking of a 180-foot former menhaden fishing boat in about 70 feet of water at Artificial Reef JY and a 72-foot steel shrimp boat at Artificial Reef CCA-JL,” said Paul Medders, leader of CRD’s Artificial Reef, Habitat Restoration and Boating Access Unit. “These vessels will provide essential fish habitat off Georgia’s coast and will eventually become populated with corals, sponges and other marine life,” Medders said. “In about two years, these reefs will become prime fishing spots for offshore anglers, as well as a unique place for SCUBA divers to visit.” The primary funding for these reef projects is the Marine Habitat “Support Fish Habitat” license plate. Additional funds were provided by the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) of Georgia, federal Sportfish Restoration funds Georgia fishing license sales. The shrimp boat Frank and Maria at Reef CCA-JL joins New York City subway cars, tugboats and other vessels already placed on the seafloor. Other items at Reef CCA-JL include former bridge supports from the previous Talmadge Bridge in Savannah. Reef JY, named for the NOAA conservation researcher Jane Yarn, includes a former NOAA research vessel, which was placed there in August 2007. The new placement of the menhaden fishing boat Tangier Island at Reef JY also joins existing M-60 battle tanks, the 442foot liberty ship SS Addie Bagley Daniels, the 99-foot tugboat El Mira and various other vessels. All materials placed in reefs are meticulously cleaned and prepared prior to their sinking, and placement of reef materials is permitted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to ensure navigation safety. Artificial reefs are beneficial off Georgia’s coast due to the state’s unique geology. The Georgia Bight extends from Cape Canaveral, Fla., to Cape Hatteras, N.C., curving inward along Georgia’s coast resulting in a wide continental shelf, a vast, shallow slope extending about 80 miles offshore. This gentle slope is largely flat, sandy material with very few natural 28
Southern Tides Magazine
June 2020
