In order to protect our natural reefs from the stress of excessive human interaction while encouraging recreational fishing and sport diving in coastal waters, "artificial" reefs are created out of a wide array of objects ranging from steel hulled ships, to army tanks, to commercial aircraft, to specially designed reef “modules.”
Recent News
A new DERM program surfaces to rescue coral reefs! 
In mid-September, DERM launched the pilot Mooring Buoy Program in partnership with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Coral Reef Conservation Program. The goal of the program is to help protect Miami-Dade County's coral reefs from damage caused by boat anchors. Twenty mooring buoys have been installed near six popular natural reef sites throughout the county.
The mooring buoys will allow boaters, divers and fisherman to tie their vessels to a buoy instead of dropping their anchors onto the fragile coral reefs. Potential future expansion of this program includes installation of an additional 17 mooring buoys at other natural and artificial reef sites.
During the summer of 2009, we have received two reported sightings of a lionfish on our artificial reefs - one at the Middle Tenneco on the Miami Dade-Broward County line, and one south at the Tarpoon wreck. The lionfish poses a serious a threat to native marine fisheries and reef habitats. Because of this, we would like to know if you have seen any lionfish while fishing or diving off Miami-Dade County. Please report sightings by calling 305-372-6859, or fill out the online form at the bottom of the Reef Species page.
Most Recent Deployment
| On July 10, 2009, the ninth Eternal Reefs array which consisted of nine memorial Reef Balls was deployed at the Golden Beach Artificial Reef Site. The Reef Balls were deployed in about 43 feet of water approximately one nautical mile east of the Town of Golden Beach. The Reef Balls are adjacent to other Eternal Reef deployments and 3 boulder "patch" reefs |
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| Name |
Description |
Date Deployed |
Depth |
Latitude |
Longitude
|
| Eternal Reefs #9 |
9 memorial Reef Balls |
July 10, 2009 |
43 feet |
25° 57.779 N
|
80°05.877 W
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