Massive artifical reef grows like wild
Mike Lee
San Diego Union Tribune
08/18/2010
A major initiative to boost sea life appears to be paying off in the coastal waters near San Clemente, where power companies spent $46 million to build what is touted as the nation’s largest artificial reef.
Independent monitoring by scientists at the University of California Santa Barbara shows that the reef reached nine of 14 benchmarks during its first year of operations. Power company officials said Wednesday they are poised to meet the other standards, perhaps this year.
The Wheeler North Reef is part of a piecemeal strategy by ocean advocates for using artificial reefs to boost habitat for marine creatures, improve fishing and provide more opportunities for divers. It was required by the California Coastal Commission to make up for the ecological damage done by the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in North County, which is owned by Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Riverside.
On Wednesday, Edison showed off the giant kelp forest that has grown over the past several months and highlighted the first UCSB monitoring report. Kelp forests sometimes are called the “rain forests of the sea” because they support hundreds of species of marine life.
“We are really well on the way to having duplicated a very complex ecosystem on a large scale,” said David Kay, head of environmental projects for the company. “You look offshore and you see this massive area of kelp canopy floating on the surface. … This is an amazing accomplishment.”
As he talked, the 174-acre reef spread out below a company helicopter for about two miles south of the San Clemente pier.
From the air, it’s obvious where Edison placed boulders at depths of about 30 feet because wavy tendrils of brown kelp — anchored to the rocks below — carpet the ocean’s surface like giant strands of hair. A few fishing boats bobbed in the gentle swells at the edge of the shimmering marine forest while seabirds rested and fed on the matted kelp.
