Estuaries Area of the Altamaha River

The 0.4 acre project site is located in McIntosh County near an emerging island in the Altamaha estuary north of Dolbow Island. The goal was to test the use of artificial cultch materials for larval oyster settlement along the shoreline.

Strategy

Constructed by the placement of 150 Fishing Aggregating Devices (FADs) each consisting of a flat concrete base with 12 PVC couplings. Twelve PVC pin cushion style arms were inserted into each FAD. Arms were three feet in length and covered with a calcium carbonate based material. Staff and volunteers from The Nature Conservancy deployed two parallel rows of FADs within the intertidal zone in an area 10 to 15 feet from the vegetative edge to encourage reef formation.

Results

Monitoring has been conducted periodically since the initial deployment. FADs have partially subsided due to shifting sands in the Altamaha estuary caused by highly dynamic currents, waves, and tidal actions. FAD arms remaining above the sediment support habitat for larvae and many juvenile recreational fish species.