Carlsbad Backs Plans to Build Artificial Reef for Sport Fishing

Eager to help spur the local sport-fishing industry, the Carlsbad City Council has given its blessing to plans for a 10,000-ton artificial reef off Batiquitos Lagoon.

The council voted unanimously Tuesday night to spend about $7,700 on a consultant to help find the right offshore site for the rock structure and conduct reviews of the reef’s effectiveness as a magnet for fish.

State Department of Fish and Game biologists will help design the structure, which would be funded with about $300,000 derived from a special tax on fishing equipment and fuel used by sport fishing boats.

DFG officials say the reef should be built during the fall. Quarry rock is dumped in up to 60 feet of water to form piles that grow algae and attract fish.

Marine biologists are especially excited about the Carlsbad reef because it will be close to Batiquitos Lagoon. The lagoon, which is slated to undergo a $20-million restoration by 1991, could serve as a spawning ground for fish that then could take up residence near the artificial reef.