What you need to know: The USS Oriskany, a retired Essex-class aircraft carrier, now rests off the coast of Florida and is the largest artificial reef in the world. Sunk in 2006, the “Grand Récif Carrier” has since attracted diverse marine life and supported local tourism.

-Artificial reefs, a practice dating back to ancient times, are created by sinking ships and other structures cleaned and environmentally friendly to promote marine habitats. Florida alone has more than 60 artificial reefs, while similar projects around the world, including decommissioned subway cars, are improving ecosystems.

-However, some efforts, such as Florida’s Tire Reef in the 1970s, have backfired, highlighting the need for environmentally friendly reef planning.

USS Oriskany: Giant WWII aircraft carrier now thrives as artificial reef

Off the coast of Florida is the Great Carrier Reef, a former World War II aircraft carrier that was sunk to become an artificial reef. Although it is the largest reef of its type created to date, it is just one of many vessels that have been given a second life under the sea.

Meet the USS Oriskany

The last Essex-class aircraft carrier built for the US Navy, USS Oriskany (CV/CVA-34), arrived too late to enter service in World War II.

However, she had a successful career. The ship received the Naval Unit Commendation three times and the Meritorious Unit Commendation three times. She earned the Korean Service Medal and two Battle Stars, as well as the Vietnamese Service Medal with 10 Battle Stars.

For almost two decades now, the The ship saw active retirement as an artificial reef.

It was determined in the 1980s that it would be too expensive to upgrade the ship. At the end of the Cold War, its hull was stripped of any equipment that could be reused or recycled. In 2004, it was transferred to the state of Florida for use as an artificial reef. The Navy had awarded a contract to Resolve Marine Group/ESCO Marine Joint Venture a year earlier for environmental remediation. necessary work.

“Since the sinking of the Oriskany, at least thirty-eight species of fish have been observed around the wreck. Additionally, Pensacola and Escambia County have generated more than $4 million from the addition of the artificial reef in 2007 alone This figure is probably high, much higher today, ” Maya Carlin wrote.

The carrier is not alone and today the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is home to 61 artificial reefs.

“The purpose of creating an artificial reef is to enhance aquatic habitat for the benefit of marine resources and to provide additional options for the conservation, management and/or development of fisheries resources. Appropriate cleanup and rehabilitation of vessels as well as the strategic reef site (location) selection will maximize the opportunity for converted vessels to provide benefits to the environment as artificial reefs, ” the Environmental Protection Agency explained.

History of artificial reefs

Sunk in May 2006, the USS Oriskany has become a popular place for divers.

The practice of sinking warships to turn them into reefs actually dates back to ancient times. Early warships that had been sunk in shallow waters as war traps were found to have “fish-attracting powers.”

Over the centuries that followed, old ships and other “trash” were thrown into the sea to become fishing hotspots.

“You can find unauthorized artificial reefs made from broken refrigerators, shopping carts without wheels or old car chassis teeming with red snapper, butterflyfish and stony corals,” explained the National Museum of Natural History from the Smithsonian.

However, there have been efforts to create artificial reefs in more environmentally friendly ways than simply dumping waste into the sea. “More than 2,500 decommissioned New York City subway cars lie offshore coasts of Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey The wagons were cleaned, dug and sunk in the Atlantic as part of a reef creation program between 2001 and. 2010,” the Smithsonian added.

All efforts to throw the old items back into the sea have been unsuccessful.

In addition to an old aircraft carrier, “Florida sank 1 to 2 million tires offshore in the 1970s in an effort to create artificial reefs, but marine life did not colonize them as expected.” “, The Conversation reported, highlighting how there can be unintended consequences.

Warships as reefs

USS Oriskany is the largest military ship deliberately sunk for use as a reef, but it is only one of many retired World War II ships that met such a fate.

A dozen Liberty Ships – built to transport supplies, fuel and personnel to Europe – were intentionally sunk in the mid-1970s by the Texas Coastal and Marine Council.

“They were later transferred to Texas Parks and Wildlife and are the centerpiece of the Texas Ships-to-Reefs program,” according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. “The Liberty ships and a World War II tanker, the SS John Worthington, are easily accessible reef sites clustered in five groups on the Gulf floor.”

Experience and expertise of the author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a writer based in Michigan. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers and websites with more than 3,200 articles published during a twenty-year career in journalism. He writes regularly on military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing writer for Forbes and Liquidation Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can send an email to the author: (email protected).

Image credit: Creative Commons.