Concrete isn't exactly what comes to mind when you think of marine life.
But in San Diego Bay, specially designed concrete structures are giving sea life places to grow.
The Port of San Diego tested this approach with ECOncrete and says the pilot was successful.
“We started out with a two-year pilot project, where we replaced sections of shoreline armoring, and we're able to see a doubling of biomass compared to the control area that was right next door,” Zach Birmingham, Program Manager for Blue Technology, Port of San Diego says.
Now, the Port is looking to test another company's approach.
Ocean Ecostructures plans to install 30 specially designed units on existing infrastructure around the bay, in hopes that marine life continues to grow.
“What's exciting about this project is that we're taking infrastructure that's already here and exploring how we can do more for San Diego Bay,” Birmingham says.
The new project still needs to go through the permitting process. Once that phase is done, the sites will be monitored over two years to see how the technology performs.
