BY DOTTY NIST
Walton County may be “dead last” among coastal counties for artificial reefs, but there is a desire to change that and an eagerness to proceed with plans to create more reefs in order to enhance local fishing and recreational opportunities.
This was evidenced by a March 3 public workshop hosted by Walton County Public Works Environmental and South Walton Artificial Reef Association (SWARA) at the South Walton Annex.
More than 20 people were in attendance, including presenters, with good representation from charter and recreational fishermen.
SWARA is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 which is assisting Walton County with design, permitting, and construction of new artificial reefs. Taylor Engineering was contracted by SWARA to prepare a draft Artificial Reef Management Plan for Walton County. The plan was prepared with the assistance and cooperation not only of the county but the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and federal agencies.
According to the draft plan document, four artificial reefs were permitted and constructed in the 1990s, with permits for those reefs expiring in 2000 and no new reef construction occurring in those areas. In 2013, Walton County applied for two new artificial reef areas located 2.4 and 4.4 nautical miles off the coastline. Permits were issued for these two reefs, according to the plan document.
At the workshop, Andy McAlexander of SWARA told attendees that permits had been issued for nine additional reefs the previous week. He also said that SWARA had raised $120,000 to fund not only a 10-year artificial reef plan for the county but permitting of 13 beach-accessible, nearshore reef sites (SAARS) and permitting of one large area artificial reef site (LAARS). The LAARS would be between three and nine nautical miles from shore, per the plan.
McAlexander explained that the LAARS would be in the neighborhood of 40 acres in size and would be an area in which members of the public could deploy their own reef structures.
The draft plan states that there will be an attempt to build “at least one reef project per year,” either new construction or “corrective action on existing reefs.”
“We want to create sustainable habitats,” said Matt Trammell of Taylor Engineering.
Trammel said the benefit-to-cost ratio for artificial reefs is “astronomically high,” at least one to 30 annually. “That’s another reason we are pushing so hard for this,” he commented.
Bill Horn, who is retired from FWC and is a new SWARA board member, commented that FWC funding for artificial reefs statewide has been on the increase.
Melinda Gates of Walton County Public Works Environmental spoke about Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) program funding for artificial reefs. She said Walton County is expected to get $1.2 million to $1.4 million for artificial reef deployment through NRDA.
Jon Dodrill of DEP, who was in attendance, said that these funds would come to DEP and would be transferred to the county. He indicated that DEP was looking forward to working in partnership with the county in connection with use of the funds. Dodrill said there would be a requirement for “high-durability” structures in connection with this funding, since these particular reefs would be close to shore.
Trammell assured him that once the money was available it would be spent quickly to “get the reefs in the water.” Snorkel reefs , which would be constructed between the shoreline and about 2,000 feet offshore, are to be undertaken first.
Attendees were invited to mark on a map where they would suggest that artificial reefs be placed. Comments were taken from the group as well.
Grayton Beach resident Edmond Alexander expressed concern that a reef proposed for Grayton Beach could interfere with the boat launch area. It was clarified that the reef site was off Grayton Beach State Park, not the boat launch area.
Alexander asked if spear fishing would be allowed at the reefs. The response was that it was prohibited at the snorkel reefs but that state law does permit spear fishing at the other reef sites.
In response to another question from Alexander, Trammel said there were no plans to mark the snorkel reefs. However, maps at the state parks will show the location of these reefs.
Charter fisherman Capt. Larry Pentel said he was in favor of “all the reefs we can put out there.” He asked for budget information for the plan, and was told that this would be provided.
Pentel asked about the use of chicken coops for reef material.
McAlexander responded that chicken coops were not allowed to be used at the SAARS reefs but could be deployed at the LAARS with county inspection and sign-off.
Dodrill cautioned that there has been a “control/command issue” with LAARS used for private deployment of materials, as materials deployed at these sites have been picked up as far as five miles from the area permitted for placement. This can have the result of a program being shut down, he warned.
Horn noted that the LAARS program proposed for Walton County will require state and federal approval. The Walton County LAARS is being proposed within state waters, which extend nine nautical miles from the coast. Permitting for this site is expected to take from one two to years.
“There is not currently a LAARS in state waters ,” Horn said.
Pentel suggested that the LAARS be sited as close to Grayton Beach as possible. He also suggested that the LAARS area include different depths of water. According to discussion at the workshop, 50 charter boats launch from the Grayton Beach boat launch area.
After additional discussion, attendees were asked if they supported the plan. There was consensus of support.
Contact information was given for further comments. These may be provided to SWARA at the email address info@waltonreefs.org—–or to Gates at the email address gatmelinda@co.walton.fl.us. or the phone number (850) 892-8108.
The draft plan will go before the Walton County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) in public session for final approval.
The plan may be viewed on the SWARA web site, www.waltonreefs.org.