Like individual jewels on a necklace, 3,300 artificial reefs surround Florida’s 1,357 miles of coastline, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission That includes approximate ly 750 known sunken ships, many of which are treasured hotspots of Florida anglers.
But they are import ant for more than just fishing. According to a 2018 report from the University of Florida, ar tificial reefs in Southwest Florida alone pumped $366 million into the re gion’s economy while adding 2,600 jobs, all re lated to fishing, sport diving, tourism, and as sociated businesses.
Personally, I would not be living in this part of Florida without these reefs. As most readers know, most of Florida’s Gulf Coast is a gently sloping desert of sand and limestone, which requires a 30-plus-mile boat trip…