TEXAS (KXAN) — The construction of the world’s largest artificial reef has been delayed again. The SS United States was scheduled for transport from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Mobile, Alabama over the weekend, where it would then be taken out to sea and sunk underwater, where it would become the artificial reef.
According to the NBC’s Philadelphia affiliate, issues at the pier led to the delay. A new date has not been set.
The 1,000-foot ocean line, which has held the transatlantic speed record for 70 years, will be cleaned and sunk off the Florida coast. It will serve as a home for thousands of fish and marine wildlife.
“It’s a, really a combination of a lot of different habitats to carry these fish along the life stages and to keep the fish in the reef,” said Curtis Hayungs with Friends of the RGV Reef.
Texas has spent the past few years making a push toward artificial reefs. Eight years ago, the non-profit Friends of RGV Reef began working alongside the Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Restoration and Artificial Reef Team to develop artificial reefs near the Rio Grande Valley.
“We noticed a real decline in fish habitat over the years due to two, really two factors, which is human interaction and climate change,” Hayungs said.
His team has sunk old fishing vessels and railway ties for the fish to use. Hayung estimates they’ve deposited over 70 million pounds of material into the ocean. “They create cracks and crevices for these little fish to hide in.”
“There’s not much rocky, hard bottom habitat for animals and fish to to have refuge and to provide food,” said Lindsey Savage, Restoration and Artificial Reef Team lead with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
According to Savage, the artificial reefs help many baby fish reach maturity.
“It gives them that extra little bit of protection when they’re smaller to get out into deeper waters offshore,” she said.
Beyond the shore
In deeper water, TPWD has turned to old oil rigs. “We have the rigs to reefs program, which essentially takes decommissioned oil rigs and uses those as artificial reefing material once it’s cleaned,” Savage said.
Over the next few years, TPWD will add 11-12 oil rigs to the program.
“We have a whole process where they donate 50% of their realized savings from reefing versus scrapping, and that goes to our account to help maintain the site, monitor it, making sure that we’re doing our due diligence to keep the site healthy.”
The Friends of the RGV Reef plan to expand their habitat in the near future. Hayungs said they plan to sink two additional vessels and drop twenty thousand tons of new material in the area.
Artificial habitat for fish
Across the coastal United States, more than three hundred artificial reefs have been built. That’s about the size of 3,600 football fields. That’s according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
A 2020 report found that the deployment of artificial reefs has led to an increase in fish populations. The report found that the population around the reef would grow while surrounding natural reef populations remained stable.
This means that the construction of the reef did not negatively impact the surrounding ecosystems.
NOAA Fisheries did find that there are some disadvantages. Artificial reefs could lead to an acceleration in overfishing due to the increased abundance.
Sea turtles may also be trapped in the structures, leading to deaths. However these events have never been directly observed.
