FOR RELEASE:  March 18, 1994                CONTACT:   Lee Scurry
                                                   (202) 208-3983
                                                            or
                                                   Villere Reggio
                                                   (504) 736-2780
                      ***FEATURE RELEASE***

       ARTIFICIAL REEFS: OASES FOR MARINE LIFE IN THE GULF (#40018)

     Whether it's an operating platform or an obsolete rig
intentionally placed for reef enhancement, a typical 200-foot
jacket -- the underwater support structure of an offshore petroleum
platform -- provides several acres of living and feeding habitat
for thousands of underwater species. 

     That's a good thing, because the natural characteristics of
the Gulf of Mexico include flat and sandy terrain with very little
coral and rock, and an obvious lack of natural reefs.  Without
artificial reefs, fish and marine life would typically become
widely dispersed -- far from ideal conditions for commercial and
recreational fishing.

     As documented by trained volunteer reef research teams,
invertebrates and plants attach to petroleum platforms almost
immediately.  Within six months to a year a newly-placed rig will
be completely covered.  This, in turn, attracts mobile
invertebrates and fish species, forming a highly complex food
chain.  

     From plants to invertebrates to small fish and the larger fish
that feed upon them, they are all attracted to artificial reefs
that render shelter from water currents, excellent breeding and
feeding grounds, and reference points for orientation in an
otherwise featureless environment.

     But according to Jack Spey, Reef Coordinator for Florida's
Okaloosa County, "Man doesn't create artificial reefs -- Mother
Nature does.  Man can only place vertical structures offshore,
which are needed in the Gulf of Mexico so that Mother Nature can
take over, and organisms can attach and prosper.

     "By placing artificial reefs, man is increasing the capacity
of nature to create habitat. Nature is then able to procreate at an
increased rate," said Spey.
 
     Unfortunately, obsolete structures are oftentimes towed to
shore and sold for scrap metal.  Not only does the scrap value
hardly pay for shore-based dismantling and disposal, but the
existing artificial reef habitat is eliminated and the associated
biological community is seriously affected.

     There is an alternative to onshore disposal -- encouraged by
the Department of Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) --
that could be both environmentally and economically more favorable.

It is the conversion of platforms to permitted artificial reefs,
known as "Rigs to Reefs."

     MMS, the agency that manages leasing, exploration and
development on Federal offshore lands, recognized these benefits
early and announced in 1983 its support for Rigs to Reefs.  A
special Departmental task force was formed called REEFS
(Recreational and Environmental Enhancement for Fishing in the
Seas), which became instrumental in motivating agencies and
organizations to begin planned and organized development of
artificial reefs.  Rigs to Reefs was addressed by Congress in the
National Fishing Enhancement Act of 1984, and a formal MMS policy
followed in 1985.

     Under Rigs to Reefs, companies donate structures, construct
the reefs, and may even donate funds from savings realized.  

     The structure is most often donated to a state, which takes
title to it.  The MMS assists by keeping apprised of current
activities and serving as an informal source of information for
states and petroleum companies regarding the possibilities of
donating platforms when leases are terminated.

     When a structure is converted, generally 50 percent of the
savings realized by a petroleum company is donated to the state
Artificial Reef Program and used for related program costs, as well
as biological and geological research.  All five coastal states
bordering the Gulf have Artificial Reef Programs.  

     According to Louisiana Artificial Reef Program Coordinator
Rick Kasprzak, a typical Rigs-to-Reefs conversion results in the
program receiving from $25,000 to $300,000. Louisiana's program,
with 36 conversions, has received a total of $5.1 million in
monetary donations to date; Texas' program has received $2.5
million.  The largest amount donated, $385,000 of savings, went to
Texas this past year when Global Marine Inc. of Houston toppled a
jacket off Galveston, Texas.

     Such monetary donations, however, are contingent on savings
being realized, which is more likely to occur in the Gulf of Mexico
where relocation costs are minimal. Conversely, moving a rig to
areas outside the Gulf -- for instance to the east coast of Florida
-- incurs higher transportation costs and results in less savings,
if any.  But just by a company donating and transporting a platform
free-of-charge, states are still able to save funds, which must
often be spent to acquire and deploy artificial reef structures.

     Florida -- which leads the Nation in total number of
artificial reefs with more than 300 -- has reefs built of
everything from ships and airplanes to bridge rubble and buses.

     Of all the possible reef-building materials, however, offshore
petroleum platforms are deemed most desirable because of their
size, shape and design, according to Florida's Dade County
Artificial Reef Program Coordinator Ben Mostkoff.  The openness of
a petroleum structure allows for water circulation and easy
mobility for fish inside the structure; it attracts not only bottom
dwelling fish, but also mid- to top-water dwellers; and its density
puts it among the most stable, durable and reusable materials
readily available.

     "The result is the same as an oasis in the desert," said Texas
Artificial Reef Coordinator Hal Osburn. "Artificial reefs increase
viable habitat and improve biodiversity."

     Because many manmade reefs utilize "materials of opportunity,"
some are short lived and may actually collapse in time.  Boxcars,
for instance, have been found to collapse after only a year or
more.  But offshore platforms are constructed originally and
specifically for the marine environment, and for that reason are
secure and reliable.

     According to Villere Reggio of the MMS, who helped draft the
National Artificial Reef Plan in 1985, "The goal is to encourage
states and fishery management planners to select suitable offshore
locations where obsolete platforms might continue to serve usefully
-- providing an ideal environment for marine life as well as
enhancing fishing and diving.  Ideally the fish, the fishermen and
divers, the petroleum companies, and the states will all benefit
from Rigs to Reefs."

                              -MMS-


FLORIDA'S HISTORY OF RIGS TO REEFS

     The first planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversion took place in
Florida in 1979 with the relocation of an Exxon experimental subsea
template from offshore Louisiana to a permitted artificial-reef
site off Florida.  To date, around 60 petroleum structures have
been converted to permanent reefs in the Gulf of Mexico.  An
estimated five platforms have been donated to the State of Florida
on behalf of fishery enhancement.

     Off the west coast of Florida three permitted Rigs-to-Reef
sites exist.  An Exxon structure was placed off Franklin County in
1979.  In 1982 a site off Escambia County was established by
Tenneco.  And most recently, a Chevron jacket was submerged
southeast of Pensacola this past fall.

     In Florida, local governments in the coastal counties initiate
reef development and act as both project managers and permit
holders.  Although a county usually must spend funds to acquire
artificial reef structures, most petroleum platforms are donated
cost-free.  Companies will also often pay for relocating a
structure -- Chevron recently covered an estimated $168,000 to
transport a jacket from Louisiana to Florida waters.

     And relocating a 625-ton platform is no easy task.  According
to Celestino Gomes, a Facilities Engineer at Chevron, it took a
20-hour barge ride to move the structure from Louisiana to its new
site.  Once there, workers spent 13 hours using special equipment
to lift and properly set both sections on the seafloor.

     But that was nothing compared to the relocation of 912 tons of
Tenneco platforms from Louisiana to the Atlantic Ocean, just 1.5
miles off the east coast of Florida.  The artificial reef,
bordering on both Broward and Dade Counties, is the largest of its
kind placed on the East Coast.

     The Tenneco reef was donated in 1985 through a joint effort
with Tenneco, the State of Florida, and the two counties.  On the
2-square-mile site rest two complete platforms -- jackets and decks
-- and a deck of a third platform.  The five sections provide more
than 100,000 feet of surface area to the underwater communities.

     "This is probably the most spectacular reef I've seen in terms
of development," said Dade County Artificial Reef Program
Coordinator Ben Mostkoff.  "The encrusting organisms really
transform the steel into a living reef -- completely encapsulating
it with marine life."

     Fishery enhancement also benefits the coastal communities
economically.  Both commercial and recreational fishing, and
recreational scuba diving have prospered from Rigs-to-Reefs
projects, which in turn increase local tourism.

     "The Tenneco platform is probably our best and most popular
dive site," said Mitchell Swaggs, co-owner of H2O Scuba on North
Miami Beach.  "More so than any other artificial reef, the platform
has an incredible abundance of growth."

     Ready for similar benefits, Okaloosa and Bay Counties are
hoping to add even more platforms to Florida's Gulf of Mexico
waters.  In fact, Okaloosa County already has the location picked
out and waiting.  At 27.5 miles from the coast and in 354 feet of
water, the county has reserved this site for a Rigs-to-Reefs
project for many years.
                                 -MMS-

TEXAS' HISTORY OF RIGS TO REEFS

     The first planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversion took place in 1979
with the relocation of an Exxon experimental subsea template from
offshore Louisiana to a permitted artificial-reef site off Florida.

To date, around 60 petroleum structures have been converted to
permanent reefs in the Gulf of Mexico.  An estimated 18 platforms
have been donated to the State of Texas on behalf of fishery
enhancement, with a 19th conversion -- a Mobil rig slated for early
this summer.

     "The recycling of obsolete petroleum platforms is the heart of
our artificial reef program," said Texas program coordinator Hal
Osburn.  "One of our goals right now is improving non-consumptive
sites -- in other words, emphasizing diving sites.  So we're
focusing on sites close to shore with high-profile structure, such
as petroleum platforms."

     The upcoming Mobil conversion will be just that -- a premier
Texas diving site. Transported from off the coast of Port Mansfield
to just seven miles off South Padre Island, the structure will
reach to just 30 feet below the water's surface -- making it ideal
for diving.

     But even before planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversions, Texas
fishermen benefitted from the increased biological activity
associated with active petroleum platforms.  Many of those working
rigs throughout the Gulf of Mexico, however, will soon deplete
their resources and be removed.  At the rate of more than 100
platforms being removed a year gulf-wide, it is estimated that 40
percent of the remaining structures could be obsolete by the year
2000.  Such a loss overall could represent a major impact on Texas
fishermen and divers as well as local tourism.

     For that reason, Texas must continue to offset a potential
loss of habitat by creating permanent artificial reefs.

     Because active rigs are de facto artificial reefs, we must
work to acquire obsolete platforms and preserve the habitat already
created, rather than just scrapping it all, said Osburn. 
                                 -MMS-


ALABAMA'S HISTORY OF RIGS TO REEFS

     The first planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversion took place in 1979
with the relocation of an Exxon experimental subsea template from
offshore Louisiana to a permitted artificial-reef site off Florida.

To date, around 60 petroleum structures have been converted to
permanent reefs in the Gulf of Mexico.  Two platforms have been
donated to the state of Alabama on behalf of fishery enhancement,
with a third conversion -- a UNOCAL jacket -- slated for
mid-summer, according to Walter Tatum, Alabama Artificial Reef
Program Coordinator and Chief Marine Biologist.

     Fishery enhancement benefits the coastal communities
economically.  Commercial and recreational fishing have prospered
from Rigs-to-Reefs projects, which in turn increase local tourism. 
The Marathon platform sections placed 60 miles offshore in 1983 are
still visited by fishermen on a regular basis and provide excellent
fishing.

                                 -MMS-

     
LOUISIANA'S HISTORY OF RIGS TO REEFS


     The first planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversion took place in 1979
with the relocation of an Exxon experimental subsea template from
offshore Louisiana to a permitted artificial-reef site off Florida.

     To date, around 60 petroleum structures have been converted to
permanent reefs in the Gulf of Mexico.  An estimated 36 platforms
have been donated to the State of Louisiana on behalf of fishery
enhancement.

     But even before planned Rigs-to-Reefs conversions, Louisiana's
fishermen benefitted from the increased biological activity
associated with active petroleum platforms. Today, with 3,800 rigs
throughout the Gulf of Mexico, rigs account for about 90 percent of
all the hard-bottom habitat in Louisiana state waters less than 300
feet deep.  In fact, about 75 percent of Louisiana's recreational
fishing trips are destined for at least one rig.

     Recreational fishing is in jeopardy, however, since many of
the gas and oil structures in the Gulf will soon deplete their
resources and be removed.  At the rate of more than 100 platforms
being removed a year gulf-wide, it is estimated that 40 percent of
the remaining structures could be obsolete by the year 2000.  Such
a loss overall could represent a major impact on Louisiana
fishermen as well as local tourism.

     The recycling of obsolete petroleum platforms "is not just a
matter of `converting,' it is maintaining the habitat that has
already been created," said Louisiana Artificial Reef Program
Coordinator Rick Kasprzak. 

     "Economically, offshore platforms are the heart and soul of
our recreational fishing industry.  But they're not permanent --
they're being removed in high numbers.  We have to work to maintain
as many as we can," said Kasprzak.

                                 -MMS-

Subject: PR-03/18/94 Rigs to Reefs/Artifical Reefs: Oases for
Marine Life in the Gulf (#40018)