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6 California Ships to Reefs Projects Approved


Outer Bamnks diving on the Great Escape Southern California Live-Aboard Dive Boat


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Posted by Captain Kevin on February 02, 2009 at 21:40:44:

Here is the text to the full press release including information about the Ocean Harvest which is potentially headed for the Casino Point dive park.


CALIFORNIA SHIPS TO REEFS ANNOUNCES SIX REEFING PROJECTS
California Ships to Reefs, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit Public Benefit Corporation is proud to announce that its Board of Directors has approved for reef plan development, six new artificial reef projects. Work has already begun on cleaning operations for the first of these projects, a 58 ft. former salmon troller, the Restless C II. The steel hulled ship, with a displacement of 117 tons and height of 25 ft. from keel to the top of the superstructure, is currently slated to be the first ship to populate the Ed Biaginni III Memorial Dive Park in Estero Bay, San Luis Obispo County, approximately 1 mile N/W of Morro Rock. The Restless C II is currently owned by and located in the City of Morro Bay.

In addition to the Restless C II, work is also being coordinated on the Gotham City, a 45 ft. concrete hulled sailboat with a displacement of 30 - 40 tons. This ship is currently stored ashore by the Morro Bay Harbor District, and has been described as a “bare hull”, ideal for reefing opportunities. California Ships to Reefs hopes to coordinate the reefing of the Gotham City along with the Restless C II in the Ed Biaginni III Memorial Dive Park, if logistics allow.
Two reef projects have also been identified for the Southern California region, the first of which is the Ocean Harvest, a 50 ft. steel hulled kelp cutter with a displacement of 53 tons. The Ocean Harvest is owned by the Wise family in Morro Bay, who are prepared to donate the ship for $1. Evaluations are underway to determine an appropriate location to reef the ship. The first option with very good potential is the Casino Point Dive Park in the city of Avalon on Santa Catalina Island. Discussions have begun with local officials to determine the viability of reefing the Ocean Harvest in the dive park.

The second Southern California opportunity results from a set of pier pilings which will become available as a result of renovations to the Dana Point Harbor dock structure. There are approximately 1200 pilings which will be removed from the harbor dock as a part of renovations beginning in 2010. This renovation will continue through 2020, providing a potential consistent source of reefing materials which might be placed at a sink site near Dana Point Harbor that is currently in the process of being identified.

The final two projects approved by the California Ships to Reefs Board of Directors are vessels formerly used extensively in the Alaskan king crab fishing fleet, the F/V Akutan, a crab processor, and the F/V Capelin, a refrigerated cargo vessel. Both ships are 166 ft. long with the Capelin displacing 421 tons, and the Akutan 380 tons. Due to the larger size of these vessels, deeper water (90 – 120 ft) in areas less susceptible to storm currents and surge would be required for these reef projects. Both vessels are currently located in Seattle, WA. Multiple sites are currently under evaluation for these reefing projects.

For further information, contact Public Relations Committee Chair Kevin Sullivan at (805) 551-8940, or visit the organization’s website at www.californiashipstoreefs.org.



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