Artificial
Reef Expanded at Redfish Point in Vermilion Bay
Posted:
8/9/06
An artificial
reef in western Vermilion Bay, just south of Intracoastal
City, Louisiana was expanded over the weekend of August 5.
The reef, Redfish Point, was once a very productive reef,
but has deteriorated in recent years. This enhancement to
the Louisiana Artificial Reef Program will increase the hard
bottom-fishing habitat for Louisiana anglers.
"This
area was once a series of relic shell beach ridges that has
eroded away over time due to coastal erosion problems and
restoring it should help to bring back the abundant fisheries
that existed in that part of Vermilion Bay for many years.
In the late 1970's and again in the 1990's LDWF began restoring
the area with the addition of relic clam shell. Restoration
of this reef has become even more critical after damages caused
by Hurricane Rita's storm surge and wave action," said
Paul Cook, biologist manager of LDWF's Marine Fisheries Division
New Iberia office.
The Louisiana
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries in partnership with the
Coastal Conservation Association of Louisiana along with the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Lafayette
Office) is coordinating the effort to rebuild the reef at
Redfish Point. The reef project received a huge boost when
Shell Oil Company announced its donation of $100,000 to the
reef. Funding was also provided by CCA Louisiana Matt Durand
Construction and NAPA Auto Parts.
"Partnerships
of this type make up the backbone of LDWF's Artificial Reef
Programs," said Rick Kasprzak, LDWF's Marine Fisheries
Division artificial reef coordinator.
The reef
will benefit Louisiana's growing recreational fishing industry,
which has a total economic impact of over $1.6 billion on
the state's economy. "The Redfish Point reef is a long-term
project, which will make this important area even more attractive
to anglers," said Jeff Angers, executive director of
CCA Louisiana.
The reef
is constructed of approximately 3,500 tons of crushed limestone,
which is the material of choice for the creation of low-profile
artificial reefs. It minimizes the impacts on other user groups
such as shrimping and navigational interests. The limestone
was transported directly to Vermilion Bay from the quarry
in Missouri via the Mississippi River and Intracoastal Waterway.
The reef material was unloaded and placed on the floor of
Vermilion Bay (latitude 29 degrees 40 minutes 40 seconds N
and longitude 92 degrees 07 minutes 06 seconds W).
The reef's
location will be listed on LDWF's Web site at www.wlf.louisiana.gov
and CCA's Web site at www.CCALouisiana.com.
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