Number of Permitted Artificial Reefs

Explanation of Indicator
Artificial reefs provide high relief habitat in areas of the sea floor where there are little or no naturally occurring underwater structures. These artificial reefs provide a concentrated habitat for a vast number of species attracted to underwater formations. In most cases the placement of these structures was initiated by the sport fishing industry in order to provide for better fishing experiences. With an increased awareness of the dynamics of an artificial reef, the use of materials has slowly changed from the early use of refrigerators and discarded tires to decommissioned vessels and bridge rubble. There is currently a movement to allow only prefabricated concrete structures to be used as reefs to prevent some of the problems (e.g., pollution, floating debris, or movement of the reef) associated with other commonly used materials.

There is a program presently in place that has identified three large areas in the Gulf of Mexico which are designated as reef building sites. Before constructing a reef in these areas, a permit must be obtained from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Monitoring of the type and quantity of reefs permitted may provide an indicator of the health and biodiversity of Florida's coastal waters. Monitoring currently provides the only source of viable data for the amount of reef, habitat since information on the acreage of natural living reefs is not available.

Data Characteristics
SOURCE
Data for artificial reefs in Florida through 1991 can be obtained from Donald W. Pybas, Florida Sea Grant College, Building 803, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, or at (904) 392-5870. Mr. Pybas compiles and publishes the Atlas of Artificial Reefs in Florida, 1991. Currently in its fourth edition, the atlas is updated in five-year intervals.

ACQUISITION
The Atlas of Artificial Reefs in Florida is available through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Fisheries and Management, 3900 Commonwealth Blvd., Tallahassee, Fl 32399-3000, or at (904) 922-4340. The data are available in hard copy format and no cost is associated with the acquisition of this information.

COLLECTION
The data are updated and tabulated for each county in five-year intervals with the next expected publication available in 1997.

Data Limitations
There are several limitations to this data. The compiled data only represent those artificial reefs actually permitted. The data do not include any reefs which may have been constructed without a permit from DEP, nor those reefs that were permitted but never constructed. Thus, the actual number of artificial reefs is unknown and is probably considerably larger than the reported number of reefs. While the data are available every five years, they are not readily available for intermediate years. These data may be obtained only from the respective counties permitting the reefs.

Data Analysis
The data show a generally upward trend in the number of permitted reefs from 1971 to 1991. Prior to 1971 there existed only 19 known sites. From 1978 to 1988 a substantial increase, from six to 72 permitted reefs, was recorded. A significant drop in the numbers of permits occurs from 1988 through 1991; during these years the number of newly-constructed reefs dropped from 72 to 12. The decrease in permits can be explained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ enforcement of a liability insurance requirement of $1,000,000 per reef. This, in effect, made it impossible for the private sector to continue to sponsor the construction of reefs. Since 1989 all reefs have been constructed by local governments.