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AI
ge e ated
I
the
ea ly
1970s,
state
officials
a d
the
US
A my
Co ps
of
E gi ee s
app oved
the
dumpi g
of
vast
umbe s
of
used
ty es
i to
the
Atla tic
Ocea
off
B owa d
Cou ty,
Flo ida.
The
idea
was
simple:
c eate
cheap,
abu da t
a tificial
eef
habitat
to
boost
fish
populatio s
fo
a gle s.
I stead,
the
scheme
left
behi d
what
is
ow
k ow
as
the
Osbo e
Ti e
Reef,
a
scatte ed
u de wate
ty e
field
that
has
d ifted
fa
beyo d
its
o igi al
footp i t
a d
damaged
the
ve y
co al
habitat
it
was
mea t
to
suppo t.
Mo e
tha
five
decades
o ,
Flo ida
is
still
wo ki g
to
emove
the
ty es
a d
epai
the
ecological
ha m.
Why
millio s
of
ty es
we e
dumped
off
Flo ida
i
the
1970s
Acco di g
to
the
Flo ida
Depa tme t
of
E vi o me tal
P otectio
(DEP),
the
ty es
we e
placed
“p edomi a tly
betwee
two
co al
eef
t acts
i
the
1970s
fo
fishe y
e ha ceme t
pu poses.”
At
the
time,
epo ts
f om
the
1960s
a d
ea ly
1970s
ecomme ded
ty es
fo
a tificial
eef
co st uctio
because
they
we e
ple tiful,
cheap
a d
easy
to
ha dle,
while
thei
use
also
offe ed
a
co ve ie t
solutio
to
the
g owi g
p oblem
of
ty e
disposal.
State
a d
fede al
pe mits
we e
duly
issued,
a d
the
mate ial
was
deployed
offsho e
of
Fo t
Laude dale,
oughly
th ee
to
fou
miles
o th
of
Po t
Eve glades
I let.Poo
eco d-keepi g
at
the
time
mea s
obody
k ows
exactly
how
ma y
ty es
we t
i to
the
wate ,
with
histo ical
estimates
a gi g
betwee
1
millio
a d
2
millio ,
acco di g
to
the
Resto atio
Pla .
Whateve
the
t ue
figu e,
the
ty es
did
ot
stay
whe e
they
we e
put.
Decades
of
sto ms
a d
hu ica es
b oke
bu dles
apa t
a d
scatte ed
loose
ty es
ac oss
a
fa
wide
a ea
tha
i te ded,
ca yi g
them
i to
co tact
with
the
eef
complexes
the
p oject
was
o igi ally
mea t
to
help.
2024
su vey
fi ds
521,000
ty es
scatte ed
ac oss
mo e
tha
6,000
ac es
The
t ue
exte t
of
the
p oblem
o ly
became
clea
th ough
ece t
su vey
wo k.
A
2024
so a
a d
AI-assisted
mappi g
exe cise,
efe ed
to
i
the
Resto atio
Pla
as
the
2024
Ti e
Su vey,
fou d
ty es
dist ibuted
ac oss
all
fou
of
the
egio ‘s
eef
complexes
a d
sa d
habitats,
cove i g
mo e
tha
6,000
ac es,
compa ed
with
oughly
770
ac es
ide tified
i
a
ea lie
2019
su vey.
Combi i g
data
f om
both
su veys,
the
DEP
estimates
that
app oximately
521,000
u bu ied
a d
visible
ty es
emai
i
the
su veyed
a ea,
of
which
a ou d
429,000
sit
i
sa d
habitat
a d
up
to
92,000
a e
i
co tact
with
co al
eef.A
compa io
i -wate
assessme t,
the
2024
Reco
Su vey,
se t
dive s
to
30
sites
to
exami e
ty e
co ditio
a d
eef
impact
di ectly.
Most
sites
had
elatively
few
ty es
actually
o
the
eef
itself,
with
the
majo ity
i stead
agg egated
i
sa d
patches
a d
t oughs
ea by,
ep ese ti g
what
the
Pla
desc ibes
as
o goi g
pote tial
fo
futu e
damage
as
ty es
co ti ue
to
shift.
Sto y
co als
we e
fou d
g owi g
o
ty es
at
18
of
the
30
sites,
a d
fou
shallow-wate
sites
co tai ed
the
e da ge ed
stagho
co al
species
g owi g
i
p oximity
to
mobile
ty es,
i dicati g
a
co ti ui g
isk
to
p otected
species.
Flo ida
has
bee
emovi g
Osbo e
Ti e
Reef
ty es
si ce
2006
Effo ts
to
et ieve
the
ty es
date
back
to
a
NOAA-fu ded
eco aissa ce
p oject
i
August
2006,
acco di g
to
the
DEP’s
p oject
summa y,
which
exami ed
emoval
st ategies
a d
tested
dive
et ieval
a d
disposal
methods
th ough
a
pilot
p og amme.
Removal
wo k
has
co ti ued
si ce
u de
state
age cy
co t acts,
most
ece tly
Age cy
Co t act
SW348,
e ewed
i
Feb ua y
2023
a d
u i g
u til
Feb ua y
2028,
alo gside
a
fu the
Age cy
Co t act
SW349
executed
i
Septembe
2025
a d
due
to
expi e
i
Septembe
2032.The
2023
Flo ida
Legislatu e
fo malised
the
state’s
obligatio s
th ough
the
Resto atio
of
Osbo e
Reef
Act,
which
equi ed
the
DEP
to
p oduce
a
status
epo t
o
ty e
emoval,
completed
i
Decembe
2023,
followed
by
this
comp ehe sive
Resto atio
Pla ,
due
by
1
July
2024.
The
Pla
sets
out
a
le gthy
timeli e:
emovi g
ty es
f om
sa d
a d
co al
eef
habitat
a d
completi g
biological
esto atio
is
expected
to
take
14
fiscal
yea s
f om
July
2024,
at
a
estimated
a ual
cost
of
betwee
$6
millio
a d
$13
millio ,
a d
a
total
p ojected
cost
of
a ou d
$137
millio .
Osbo e
Ti e
Reef
esto atio
aims
to
eplace
lost
co al
ac oss
247
ac es
Acco di g
to
the
Flo ida
Osbo e
Ti e
Reef
Resto atio
Pla ,
a
biological
esto atio
p og amme
i te ded
to
eplace
lost
co al
fu ctio
i
the
wo st-affected
a eas.
Usi g
be thic
su vey
data
collected
by
B owa d
Cou ty
betwee
2003
a d
2021,
the
DEP
calculated
a
ma ked
decli e
i
sto y
co al
de sity
ove
that
pe iod
a d
used
this
figu e,
applied
ac oss
oughly
247
ac es
of
ide tified
impact
a ea,
to
a ive
at
a
ta get
of
98,101
co al
colo ies
to
be
g ow
a d
outpla ted
ac oss
te
p io ity
g id
cells
i
each
of
the
egio ‘s
th ee
mai
eef
complexes.Befo e
a y
ty es
ca
be
emoved
f om
eef
habitat,
dive s
must
fi st
elocate
sto y
co al
colo ies
g owi g
o
them,
followi g
equi eme ts
set
out
u de
a
Flo ida
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Co se vatio
Commissio
Special
Activity
Lice se.
Co t acto s
a e
also
equi ed
to
secu e
pe mits
f om
seve al
age cies,
i cludi g
B owa d
Cou ty,
the
DEP,
the
South
Flo ida
Wate
Ma ageme t
Dist ict
a d
the
US
A my
Co ps
of
E gi ee s,
befo e
esto atio
wo k
i
co al
eef
habitat
ca
begi .
As
of
late
May
2024,
acco di g
to
the
Pla ,
a ou d
1,400
co als
had
al eady
bee
emoved
f om
ty es
u de
the
existi g
p oject,
with
mo e
tha
1,000
outpla ted
di ectly
o to
atu al
eefs.
