Four and a half miles north of Grand Isle, large cranes dropped bulbous gray blobs of concrete into Barataria Bay on Wednesday morning. The lumpy structures will become a new habitat for sport fish and smaller organisms, after the removal of a decommissioned oil rig last year disrupted the wildlife habitat and the local fishing economy.
The new artificial coral reef will cover 10,000 square feet, spanning four areas in a 10-acre region and consisting of more than 500 individual structures. Dubbed “Cajun coral,” the reef was the result of a $100,000 donation by Raising Cane’s founder Todd Graves, in partnership with the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) Louisiana and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).
“Being from Louisiana, being a fisherman and a conservationist, it’s a really exciting day for me and I’m really proud to support CCA in building this reef,” Graves said.
Technology company Nastrx used a method similar to 3D-printing to design the reefs particularly suited for the marine climate. The irregular shapes of the structures increase the reef surface area – promoting more wildlife activity with less material. Danos, an energy service provider, prints and installed the reefs.
Last year, a decommissioned oil rig named “Hotel SID” was removed. Rad Trascher, the executive vice president of CCA Louisiana, said the spot was a “focal point” for the fishing community. Graves, who grew up fishing in Grand Isle, similarly said that its removal was depressing because of its destruction to marine life and impact on anglers. The new reef has been named “Raising Cane’s Hotel SID” to honor the old oil rig and Graves’ hefty donation.
Workers use a special claw on a backhoe to lower one of 500 3D printed concert modules from a barge into the gulf to help build a reef as Todd Graves and State and local officials watch on Wednesday, August 14, 2024 in Grand Isle, Louisiana.
STAFF PHOTO BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
‘Springtime next year’
The reef will become a habitat for popular fish like speckled trout, redfish, black drum, sheepshead and flounder, according to LDWF. It will also house smaller organisms, like clams and coral. David Cresson, the executive director of CCA Louisiana, estimated that the reef would be producing fish within the next few months.
“Every one’s a little different,” he said, noting that small organisms tend to emerge almost immediately after the installation. “Springtime next year would be a good time to start hitting the Hotel Sid reef.”
The reef project costs around $500,000, Cresson said. The funding sources are a combination of CCA funding, Graves’ donation and state matching dollars through the LDWF’s artificial reef trust fund.
During the reef installation press conference, Graves also announced his plans to help fund four additional artificial reefs, for a total donation of $500,000.
“Why do one? Let’s go ahead and do five,” he said.
“Raising Cane’s Hotel Sid” is the 52nd artificial reef that CCA Louisiana has helped install in partnership with LDWF since 2002, and the fifth reef using Nastrx Exoform structures. It’s also the largest reef CCA Louisiana has installed since 2018.
“This is another opportunity for us to get our anglers out on the water, give them more opportunity to be able to fish every single day,” LDWF Secretary Madison Sheahan said.
Workers use a special claw to pick up one of 500 3D printed concert modules to be lower into the gulf to help build a reef on Wednesday, August 14, 2024 in Grand Isle, Louisiana.
STAFF PHOTO BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
‘A barren wasteland’
So far, the reefs built using the irregularly shaped concrete structures “have shown really good promise and good productivity,” Cresson said. Last week, he travelled to one of these reefs – near Port Fourchon on a small slice of land called Pelican Island – and caught fish.
“It was a barren wasteland before we built that reef,” Cresson said.
Nastrx, based in Raleigh with facilities in Amelia, has employed its technology in the Chesapeake River, around the Gulf of Mexico and earlier this year signed onto a coastal restoration project in Hawaii. The tech company custom builds its concrete blocks to fit specific habitats using a process akin to 3D printing called dry forming, Dylan DiBona, brand and marketing lead for Nastrx, explained.
In the case of the revamped Hotel SID, the company designed structures that would leave room for passing boats over the six to eight feet of depth while attracting as much marine life as possible. The strangely shaped concrete reef somewhat resembles cypress knees, DiBona said, which draws marine organisms to its rough surface and creates a water flow that attracts fish.
Nastrx’s structures promote ongoing habitat and ecological benefits that strengthen over time, DiBona said, while using less material than some other artificial reefs, which can be made out of cement balls or pyramids, recycled oyster shells, recycled concrete or rocks.
“You see all the little bumps and nooks and crannies,” Cresson said. “If you were just to put a cement block out there, a square block, it would be fine, it would attract life, but it’s that much less surface area.”
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Publish date : 2024-08-14 10:25:00
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