Firms Donate to Rigs-to-Reefs Fish Program

Two energy companies have donated oil field equipment scraps for a program that transforms old pipe, rigs and platforms into fish habitats in the Gulf of Mexico.

Galveston County officials expect to begin construction early next year on a necklace of artificial fishing reefs using 1,000 feet of 10-inch pipe dug up from a products pipeline and donated by Conoco Inc.

“To my knowledge, these are the first artificial reefs in the Galveston area, perhaps anywhere on the Gulf Coast, to be constructed for this specific purpose,” said county Commissioner Eddie Barr.

Conoco also has offered to deliver another 4,500 feet of 24-inch pipe to Galveston as soon as county workers are ready for it, Barr said.

The 24-inch pipe was fabricated as tethers for Conoco’s tension-leg well platform but became scrap when it was damaged during transport in rough seas.

The pipe will be cut and welded into 20-by-20-by-15-foot structures and sunk at various sites off the Galveston shore.

In a separate project, Transco Exploration Partners plans to sink a portion of an inactive production platform in the offshore High Island field early next year in deeper U.S. waters.

Transco stopped production in the High Island field in 1988 and plans to move the rest of the platform. The state has received permission from the Corps of Engineers to establish reefs in that field.

Since offshore oil exploration started in the late 1940s, it has been common knowledge that marine life cluster around drilling and production platforms to feed on tiny organisms clinging to the rigs.

A few weeks after rigs sink in the gulf, artificial reefs become crusted with marine organisms that attract many species of fish, including red snapper, amberjack, Spanish mackerel, kingfish and barracuda, said Tom Kessler, Galveston County assistant engineer.

“Fish prefer lots of shaded nooks and crannies in which to school and feed on these organisms. These reefs will serve as good facilitators in the food chain cycle. They will provide more spawning ground for fish, which can then become a managed resource,” Kessler said.

The oil industry views Texas’ rigs-to-reefs program as a way to benefit the environment.

“Since we take petroleum from beneath the sea, it is only natural that we give something in return --especially in our own back yard,” said Bob Walker, vice president of Conoco’s supply and transportation division.

“Helping create a feeding ground for marine life is an excellent opportunity for everyone involved. A series of artificial reefs like this could produce important economic benefits for the tourism and fishing industries,” Walker said.

Other cities use sunken ships, retired oil platforms and junked cars to attract marine life, Barr said.

Barr said county officials are working to coordinate their efforts with the Texas Artificial Reefs Committee, which is drawing a map outlining the best spots for artificial reefs.

County officials want to sink artificial reefs along a rocky ridge that runs parallel to the island where water depths range from 25 feet to 70 feet. Barr hopes that the reefs can be put close enough to the island for access by sport fishermen in power boats and scuba divers.

County commissioners have applied for a $50,000 grant from the Moody Foundation to pay for construction and transportation of the first reefs, which are expected to be completed and sunk offshore in the spring.

The Galveston Chamber of Commerce estimates charter fishing generates $2.25 million annually that turns over three to five times in the local economy, yielding an economic impact of up to $11 million.