Reef Ball Foundation Photos and Project Description Database

Buying a ton for the Bay By Renee Gilliard, Daily Banner CAMBRIDGE - The Maryland Department of Natural Resources made plans to purchase chunks of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in order to improve the Chesapeake Bay. On the Potomac River, a 7 1/2 mile stretch including the 6,075 ft. bridge is being reconstructed at a cost of $2.5 billion. The ambitious six-year renovation extends into next year when both of the two replacement bridge structures will be complete. From the demolition, the previous bridge has yielded tons of concrete chunks of which the Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen's Association and Maryland DNR have discovered has a beneficial aquatic purpose. The MSSA, along with the DNR and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, began a local artificial reef installation plan when they placed eighty concrete reef balls into the Choptank River near Hambrooks Bar. With concrete donated by Barnett Concrete and molds from Composite Yacht, the MSSA produced 120-pound blocks of concrete perforated with 4 to 8 inch holes, known as reef balls. Mid-Shore Electronics also donated storage space for the completed reef balls. These concrete reefs provide hard, porous surfaces on which organisms such as oysters or truncates attach themselves. Fish are therefore attracted to the reef to feed and for their own shelter, providing a rich fishing area. When Dorchester County MSSA president Clint Waters heard about the bridge demolition, he was excited by the opportunity to further improve the local fishing industry. "I thought this was really a once -in-a-lifetime opportunity, because these artificial reefs create a habitat for a lot of marine life. That bridge is producing tons of reef material," Mr. Waters said. MSSA plans to contribute to the Maryland Artificial Reef Initiative, a collaboration of more than thirty partners, which focuses on using the surplus concrete from the demolished bridge to create at least a dozen reefs throughout the Bay. Plans to develop reef sites are already under way, including local.......