DIVE TIME By Tim Grollimund
Buoy system invented here helps protect reefs everywhere
E-Mail this story
Print this story
tool name
close
tool goes here
Posted - Friday, May 27, 2011 12:07 PM EDT
A main use of morring buoys along the reef tract is to mitigate damage that can be caused by anchors, like the abandoned anchor seen at the Blue Hole, north of Molasses Reef. (Photo by Tim Grollimund)
When I was growing up in a small town in the Shenandoah Valley, we had a few hometown sports heroes. Some were known in the town, others escalated statewide when they went to college and had a good college career, and we even had a guy make it to the major leagues and become the MVP for the Baltimore Orioles. But not often do you have the privilege of talking with hometown folks whose efforts have had — and still do have — worldwide implications.
Start with an idea, implement it on a small scale, and grow it to become a world dominating practice. Weather the bumps and bruises along the way, but never give up and always think in terms of the benefits to your constituents. In this context I would compare John Halas to Bill Gates. While Mr. Gates was transforming the personal computer software market, Halas was transforming the way we interact with our coral reefs. Pretty much the same time frame, too. Although Mr. Gates’ company has made him a personal fortune, John’s efforts have made all of us who dive richer for the experience.
By the mid 1970s, Halas had been helping Harold Hudson of the U.S. Geological Survey to take coral samples in the Keys. After taking core samples, they plugged the holes with cement. At the time Halas had a dive shop, and there had been some discussions among dive operators about how to reduce anchor damage on the reefs.
Idea is born
As an employee of the Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary in 1981, Halas said, a light bulb went off. He thought through his idea, presented it to the powers that be and got permission to set six experimental mooring buoys on French Reef using Harold Hudson’s core sampling technique. Those first six mooring buoys have been maintained over the years and are still on French Reef today.
In that first batch, different materials were used to gauge durability, strength and maintenance issues. Within that first test year, plans were made to set forty additional mooring balls in the Upper Keys. Over the next several years, numerous reef protection groups and government agencies picked up the theme, and we now have a worldwide system that has made giant strides to prevent anchor damage and protect coral resources.
Today in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, there are nearly 800 mooring and special-use buoys. The number worldwide is over 4,000. You can see where all the dive site mooring buoys are located at www.floridakeys.noaa.gov/mbuoy/. Currently the Mooring Buoy Specialist Team for the Upper Keys consists of Hank Becker, Robert Snyder and Brady Booton.
While there was some concern and reluctance to accept the system among some of the dive operators in the early days of the program, mooring buoys have developed into the preferred method. Now it seems the discussion centers more on the buoy system as a management tool as much as a preservation tool. But that is an entirely different discussion. Those dialogs are about traffic levels on the reef, and placing the buoys in pristine versus frequently used sites.
There are many studies that examine reef quality, usage and the implications for tourism, so it is important for us in the diving community to understand the ramifications of the mooring ball system.
At a time when over 60 percent of our reefs are in trouble, the implications for reef conservation from the mooring ball system are incalculable. A few weeks ago I said I would update you with new information about the state of our reefs. The new report, called Reefs at Risk Revisited is available, and you can download it on the World Resources Institute website, www.wri.org/reefs. On the main page you can easily find the Google map and zero in on the Keys, or anywhere else in the world you’d like to check reef conditions.
When you put all this in perspective, and have the ability to take a world view, it’s even more apparent just how valuable the mooring ball system pioneered by Halas is to reef ecosystems. Now I call that a hometown hero. And so did Oceana in 2009, honoring John with the inaugural Ocean Heroes Award. I would equate that with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Oscars. And once again, the Florida Keys prove to be a world class place. Not only for our reef system, but also for the efforts to preserve it. Couple that with organizations like Reef Environmental Education Foundation and the Coral Restoration Foundation, and we really are a world class destination with local talent willing to excel in ideas, technologies and processes to preserve submerged resources.
If you have information on unusual marine life sightings or great diving conditions, please write to me. I welcome your feedback.
