Subway Cars Dumped Into Sea To Make Artificial Reef

Mar 26, 2011 0 comments

Photographer Stephen Mallon took photos of New York City's discarded subway cars as they are tossed into the ocean, over a period of two and a half years, for his photo series Next Stop Atlantic. The initiative, headed by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, has deposited hundreds of the vacant vessels in an effort to jump start a new reef 16 miles off the state’s coast.

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The concept has already shown great promise, transforming “a barren stretch of ocean floor into a bountiful oasis, carpeted in sea grasses, walled thick with blue mussels and sponges, and teeming with black sea bass and tautog.” The reef is currently composed of 714 cars and continues to grow, creating “a thriving community in what was once an underwater desert”.

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Source: Inhabitat, MyModernMet

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