Roads to Reefs will complement Alabama's offshore program with emphasis on inshore waters. While offshore reefs have greatly improved fisheries, they are most beneficial to individuals with large boats. Inshore reefs will extend the same benefit to individuals who prefer short trips and shallower, more protected water, said Smith. The natural bottom in Mobile Bay and off the Alabama coast is predominately flat sand and mud, which attracts few fish that are valuable for recreation or commercial purposes, explained Jim Duffy of the Conservation Department's Marine Resources division. Anything that adds vertical relief quickly transforms the character of the habitat.
Artificial reefs attract encrusting organisms like coral and sponge.
Once they are established, small bait fish take up residence and larger fish are attracted. Once the complete reef food web is created, the artificial reef functions as a natural reef. Nearly 50 years ago, the Orange Beach Charter Boat Association placed 250 car bodies off the Baldwin County coast. The artificial reef was so successful that all sorts of objects have been placed - bridge rubble, boats, planes, even old liberty ships and tanks. When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorized expansion of Alabama's artificial reef area from 800 to 1,200 square miles in 1997, they also placed stricter limits on what materials could be used for reef construction.