Nearshore reef deployment is scheduled for Father’s Day weekend.

Written by Kristen Schmutz

Belden Communications News 

Volusia County has partnered with the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA), Shell USA, Inc. (Shell), and the Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) to deploy 350 tons of concrete structures and 30 tons of granite at the newly permitted reef site, located approximately 2.75 miles off the shore of Lighthouse Point Park on Saturday, June 18.

According to a release, OUC donated concrete structures from a new net-zero utility campus under construction in St. Cloud (Osceola County), a staging site, and transportation of the materials. Shell donated the granite, while the CCA donated $20,000 to Volusia County to pay for the deployment of the materials by the artificial reef contractor, McCulley Marine Services.

County Officials will release the exact departure time of the barge transporting the material out of Ponce Inlet on the county's Facebook page closer to the day of deployment.

Being the reef site is so close to the shore, recreational boaters will have the opportunity to view the deployment, while the barge transporting the material should be viewable from shore. The deployment from the barge will be hard to see from the shoreline with the naked eye.