Reef Ball Foundation Digital Assets

The Seawall Oyster Reef Program has been extremely active and successful over the last year. Due to the fact that residential finger canal construction has left extensive shoreline areas devoid of natural communities, the Seawall Oyster Reef Program has proved to be an important aspect in promoting oyster colonization in these canals. These canals are often too deep for mangrove or saltmarsh establishment and have unsuitable water quality for seagrass growth. By promoting oyster growth in these canals: • the oyster communities provide diverse food sources or foraging areas for a variety of important species, such as redfish, snook, ibis, herons, crabs and shrimp, • the oyster communities are able to naturally filter the water, • the reefs help stabilize the sediments and lower erosion rates of shoreline areas, • the surface areas and smaller interstitial areas are increased for other attaching organisms, like barnacles, sea squirts, and corals, thus improving productivity of the benthic area, and • the constructed oyster communities provide recreational opportunities for the homeowners by improving fishing along the seawalls. The purchase of 12 fiberglass reef ball molds allows Tampa BayWatch two sets of molds that can be rotated among school programs, neighborhood groups or other groups, to construct reef units on-site. During the second year of the program, a total of 250 additional reefs have been constructed and .installed. A total of 44 Lo-Pro size reef balls, 192 oyster ball size, and 14 A-Jacks style reef units were constructed during the USFWS program period. Most of the new reefs (92 in all) were installed in front of individual homeowner seawalls in northeastern St. Petersburg. Admiral Farragut Academy also built and installed 19 seawall reefs in their boat basin located on Boca Ciega Bay in St. Petersburg. St. Raphael's Preparatory School constructed and installed an additional 31 seawall reefs in the Snell Island area of St. Petersburg. An additional eight reefs were installed at the Snell Isle Marina by Tampa BayWatch staff. Tampa BayWatch completed a project in the spring of 2000 with the Neighborhoods Against Stormwater Pollution in the Westshore area of Tampa. The neighborhood group received a small grant from the Southwest Florida Water Management District to conduct community education on stormwater and install seawall reefs in their canals. The residents asked Tampa BayWatch for assistance to fulfill their contractual obligations. Tampa BayWatch acquired the necessary permits from the Tampa Port Authority and Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County to install 200 units over the next five years. A total of 100 seawall oyster reefs were constructed and installed this spring. The remaining 100 permitted reefs will be placed in the Westshore area next fall. This brings the two-year program total to 457 seawall reefs. Our initial program goal to construct and install 500 reefs within the first three-year time frame is on schedule to be completed. These constructed oyster reefs have been placed throughout the bay, either behind residential homes, local boat ramps (along the seawall), marinas, or behind public school property.