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Wheeler North Reef |
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| The Wheeler North Reef represents the final phase of a two-phase artificial reef project designed to mitigate the impacts of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) on the kelp habitat in the vicinity of the nuclear plant. The 127.6-acre reef will be constructed from quarry rock that conforms to California Department of Fish and Game specifications for augmentation of articicial reefs. Beginning on June 9, 2008, the reef will be constructed 0.6 miles offshore of San Clement, California, in the project area, an 862-acre leased parcel. Construction is expected to last 100 working days. The project was originally to be called the SONGS Mitigation Reef Project, but in 2006, the California State Lands Commission (CSLC) adopted a resolution declaring that it should be named in honor of Dr. Wheeler North, a Cal Tech professor who studied kelp reefs for many years before passing away in 2002. The final reef will fulfill Coastal Commission Permit No. 6-81-330-A, Section 2.4, Condition C, Kelp Reef Mitigation, which mandated the completion of an artificial reef subject to compliance monitoring by the California Coastal Commission (CCC). Phase 1, which was completed in September 1999, involved the construction of a 22.4-acre experimental reef. The experimental reef was designed to test the suitability of the primary site (San Clemente) for sustaining a giant kelp fores community. In addition, construction material suitability (rock vs. concrete), density of hard substrate coverage on the bottom (17, 34, and 67 percent), and biological community assessments (including kelp community density differences as a function of distance from the adjacent existing natural kelp bed, the San Mateo Kelp Bed) were studied and evaluated. The Wheeler North Reef will be made up of 11 polygons varying in area from 2.4 to 37.5 acres. In addition, eight contingency polygons (34.0 acres total) were designed as potential alternative reef construction areas. The may be used if it is determined during Phase 2 construction that the anchoring locations would directly or indirectly impact valuable biological resources or if surveys should indicate inadequate areal coverage. These alternative sites may also be used for future remediation if the Wheeler North Reef fails to meet the established performance standards laid out in Coastal Commission Permit No. 6-81-330-A, Section 2.4, Condition C. See PowerPoint Presentation: Experimental Reef 1999 Wheeler North Reef Final Report June 11, 2008 |
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