Since
the early 1990s, Project AWARE has helped turn several
ships into artificial reefs off the Canadian, Mexican,
US, UK and most recently Kenyan coasts. Organisers thoroughly
clean the ships and open many passageways to make them
appealing habitats to marine life as well as safer for
visiting divers. Project AWARE has also continuously
provided support to reefball projects worldwide. These
initiatives help take pressure off the natural reefs
which are in decline. The theory is simple: the more
people who use the artificial reefs, the fewer use natural
ones. Natural reefs therefore have time to recover and
replenish. However, it is not that simple and some issues
should be mentioned concerning some unique aspects of
artificial reefs and dive tourism. Several critical
issues of national importance provide the focus for
many debates regarding manmade reef activities. These
include permit programmes, regulatory requirements,
materials criteria, liability, research and evaluation,
site location, and the role of all parties involved
in artificial reef development, management and regulation.
Regulatory requirements
It is laudable that dive tourism entities are interested
in learning how to properly prepare and place artificial
reefs. In developed countries today, the lion's share
of the expense in preparing a ship for placement is
in cleaning it to the high standards required by environmental
regulators. In some countries such rigorous requirements
don't apply but it is important that dive operators
who want to create an artificial reef adhere to these
requirements even when not required by local law.
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A poorly prepared ship can have a devastating impact on
marine life. Derelict ships, in particular, contain considerable
amounts of toxic substances such as PCBs, asbestos, lubricants
/ fuel and highly poisonous paint.
Success story in Kenya
Buccaneer Diving and Buccaneer
Wrecks Team with the support of Project AWARE (UK) spent
more than a year preparing and thoroughly cleaning a 75
metre decommissioned livestock carrier M.V. Dania to create
an artificial reef within the Mombasa Marine Park Boundaries
in Kenya. The Kenya Wildlife Services inspected the vessel
and the Buccaneer Wreck Team received permission to sink
it. This was achieved successfully on the 27th October
2002. The Dania is now resting perfectly upright with
her keel at 30 metres. The various routes made available
for divers have been colour-coded for safety reasons.
The Buccaneer divers have found, much to their satisfaction,
that the wreck had already been inhabited by remora, sardines
and fry. The Buccaneer Wreck Team is now continuously
monitoring and evaluating the site.
The sinking event was a tremendous success and it is hoped
that M.V. Dania will place Mombasa firmly on the map as
an environmental sustainable tourist destination.
The impact on fish populations
This is just one example of a successful artificial reef
project among others. Success doesn't always follows naturally.
Among the numerous concerns related to artificial reef
projects, there are also concerns regarding its impact
on fish populations particularly in developing nations
where fisheries laws and enforcement may be inexistant.
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Placement of artificial reefs results in the aggregation
of fish. As a result, the effort required to catch these
fish within a particular area is decreased. When there
is no regulation of the fishery, an artificial reef may
contribute to a decline in local fish populations simply
by making them easier to catch.
Well-intended attempts to help conserve local marine resources
by placing an artificial reef could actually have the
opposite effect.
The right choice of materials
Understandably, we most often assume that artificial reef
projects are beneficial, or at least benign, to the environment.
Marine tourism and conservation can go hand in hand, but
the marriage is not automatic. Beyond the general guidelines
that artificial reefs should create no hazard to
navigation and the marine environment, materials used
to develop artificial reefs should not create the potential
to trap divers or marine vertebrates.
Compatibility of materials with the marine environment
is essential to developing a successful artificial reef.
Materials must be selected because they meet the primary
goal of creating habitat for marine fish and invertebrate
organisms. Cars, construction materials, tires for example
are listed under the Dumping Activities section of the
Ocean Conservancy International Coastal Cleanup Data Card.
Before considering any artificial reef project, individuals
and dive operators should be aware of all the issues,
environmental and legal requirements involved in the preparation
and placement of an artificial reef. Project AWARE is
committed to serve as the compass in guiding the path
for those who are sincerely interested in protecting the
environment. Guidelines for Marine Artificial Reef Materials
and a Coastal Artificial Reef Planning Guide is available
from Project AWARE (UK), contact Domino Albert on aware@padi.co.uk.
Funding guidelines are also available on www.projectaware.org.
If you are interested in M.V. Dania project, please visit
www.buccaneerdiving.com
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