​For over 50 years, Palm Beach County has been creating underwater habitats out of materials like ships, limestone rock, and concrete.  Artificial reefs function as a natural reef system, providing food, shelter, protection, and spawning areas for hundreds of species of fish and other marine life.  One of the most important benefits of these artificial reefs is that they take pressure off of natural coral reef formations by providing additional places for fishing and diving.

The Artificial Reef and Estuarine Enhancement Committee formed in 1985 to bring together local officials, anglers, scuba divers, scientists, and conservationists to review, discuss and make recommendations on marine enhancement projects in the county.  Today, there are 151 artificial reefs off our 47 miles of Atlantic coastline.  Over 45 vessels, 82,000 tons of concrete, and 130,000 tons of limestone boulders have been deployed to create these habitat in the county's near shore and offshore waters.

Funding for the artificial reef program comes from vessel registration fees supplemented by grants from federal and state agencies, along with donations from fishing tournaments, local dive associations, corporations, and individuals.  Non-monetary support includes donated reef material such as old concrete and ships.  Florida Power & Light Company, a longtime supporter of the County's program allows use of its property located near the Lake Worth Inlet as a staging site.

Additional support comes from the Palm Beach County Reef Research Team.  These dedicated volunteer scuba divers give thousands of hours of their time monitoring marine life on the county's reefs, both natural and artificial.  The physical and biological data they collect helps the County and State improve future artificial reef design and construction.

Most artificial reefs are constructed at depths appropriate for recreational scuba divers, at less than 100 feet.  Some are deployed in deeper water to accommodate anglers.  The reefs are valuable environmental and recreational amenities, and also contribute to Palm Beach County's economy, making them an important investment.

On July 13, the Ana Cecilia was sunk off the Lake Worth Inlet to become the newest addition to the chain of artificial reefs in our county.  This 170-foot supply ship was recently confiscated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection for transporting illegal drugs.  In previous years the ship had been used to transport humanitarian goods between Miami and Havana.  Customs agreed to donate the ship to Palm Beach County's Department of Environmental Resources Management to add to the county's fleet of underwater ecosystems.

At a ceremony earlier this summer, the Ana Cecilia was dedicated in honor of local community members from the Jones, Bell, Cohen and Stephanos families who were missing and lost at sea.

For more information about the County's artificial reef program or other matters of interest, you can visitwww.pbcgov.com/erm/coastal.reef  or contact me at 561-355-2201, or by email at hvaleche@pbcgov.org.