Divers
and
snorkelers
will soon
have another
sanctuary
where they
can spot
South
Florida sea
creatures –
an
artificial
reef
stretched
across 2
acres near
Phil Foster
Park in
Riviera
Beach.
The reef,
mostly made
of limestone
boulders,
will be in 6
to 12 feet
of water in
the no-boat
area just
south of the
park’s beach
under the
Blue Heron
Bridge.
Sandwiched
between the
beach’s
swimming and
boating
areas, it
will provide
a refuge not
only for
divers and
snorkelers
but also for
marine life,
Palm Beach
County
project
coordinator
Harvey
Rudolph
said.
Seahorses,
octopuses,
manatees,
turtles, a
variety of
fish and
other sea
critters
have been
spotted in
the Lake
Worth Lagoon
water.
“You can
see stuff
here that
you normally
can’t see
except
offshore,”
he said.
Construction
started
Wednesday,
and fish are
flocking to
the few
piles of
limestone
placed. Once
algae
encrusts the
rocks in
about a
month, more
creatures
will inhabit
the reef’s
ledges,
nooks and
crannies, he
said.
When
finished, in
about two
weeks, the
artificial
reef will
include 16
separate
piles of
limestone,
about 630
tons in all;
reef-like
concrete
modules; and
smaller
rocks placed
between the
piles to
create a
snorkeling
“trail.”
“We try
to put in a
variety of
different
materials at
different
depths to
create a
good
habitat,”
said Daniel
Bates,
deputy
director of
the county’s
Department
of
Environmental
Resources
Management.
“We use
limestone
because it’s
soft enough
that
creatures
can burrow
and live
there. It
mimics
natural
reefs.”
The
Environmental
Resources
Management
and Parks
and
Recreation
departments
are using
$87,000 from
vessel
registration
fees to
build the
artificial
reef and
underwater
trail. There
also will be
a kiosk west
of the
park’s
lifeguard
tower that
will show a
layout of
the trail,
offer safety
tips and
explain some
creatures
snorkelers
are likely
to
encounter.
These
manmade
reefs are
important
harbors for
marine life,
Bates said.
There are
more than
100
artificial
reefs
sprawled
across the
county, most
of which
were built
with money
from vessel
registration
fees.
Despite
past
bacterial
contamination
problems at
Phil Foster
Park, Parks
and
Recreation
Director
Eric Call
said he’s
not
concerned
about
putting the
reef there.
Vessels
that were
likely
causing the
contamination
were
relocated
and the
water
“hasn’t had
a poor
reading in a
while,” he
said. The
last poor
rating the
water
received
from the
health
department
was in
January.
Call said
the
abundance of
sea life and
the park’s
easy access
and free
parking make
it a “hidden
jewel” and a
dive
hotspot.
“People
come from
all over the
world to
dive at that
particular
spot,” Bates
said.
Some
divers are
already
looking
forward to
the new
reef.
“Anything
they can do
to preserve
and conserve
the sea life
is great,”
said Nelson
Chirillo, of
West Palm
Beach.
“And
they’ll be
more (sea
life) to
look at,”
added his
friend Evan
Alva, also
of West Palm
Beach.
Chirillo,
30, and
Alva, 27,
have been
diving about
three times
a week at
the park for
the past two
years. They
said they’ve
seen
everything
from
octopuses to
sharptail
eels to
hawkfish.
“It
doesn’t get
more
beautiful
than here,”
Chirillo
said.