The water pressure cannon on the small barge in the Cape Fear River was turned on and its firehose of water was soon pushing the fragments of broken concrete into the waterway at Carolina Beach State Park, south of Wilmington, N.C.

But this was not some kind of illegal attempt to dispose of unwanted material. In fact, it was the exact opposite — the reuse of a manufactured product to help protect and enhance the coastal environment.

The concrete shards pouring into the river will help build a 5-acre artificial oyster reef just off the state park's shoreline, the Wilmington Star-News reported March 3, 2025.

The goal of the $1.9 million restoration work, a collaboration between the nonprofit North Carolina Coastal Federation and the state's Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), is part of a larger attempt — dubbed the Lower Cape Fear River Blueprint — to rebuild oyster habitats in the river's watershed that, like in most of the state, has been devastated by decades of overharvesting, habitat destruction, declining water quality, disease and in the case of the Cape Fear River, channel deepening projects.

The eventual aim is to take steps to build artificial reefs along much of the lower Cape Fear that enhance the waterway, improve water quality and provide important habitat for marine life.

"The completion of this reef is an important step in the implementation of the Cape Fear River Oyster Pathway," said Ted Wilgis, a coastal scientist with the federation, in a news release.

Researchers call oyster reefs habitat multipliers since so many marine critters beyond oysters utilize them for foraging, spawning and living areas.

An acre of the artificial reef, which lies just south of the mouth of Snows Cut on the river, was constructed in 2017.

The latest project, which began in February, involves dumping 2,100 tons of recycled concrete to build the remaining 4 acres of the shallow reef, an effort that should wrap up in the coming weeks, the Wilmington newspaper noted.

Along with their reefs providing habitat for a host of other species, oysters also are vital to improving coastal water quality. Each oyster can pump up to 50 gal. of water through its body every day, removing nutrients and algae from the water as it does so. That, in turn, creates clearer and cleaner water for marine life to grow and thrive.

Jordan Byrum, enhancement project manager of the North Carolina DMF, told the Star-News that oysters alone will not help solve a waterway's water quality woes.

"But it's certainly a step in the right direction," he said, as another load of crushed concrete was loaded onto a barge from the state park marina's parking lot.

Byrum added that while only concrete was currently being dumped to build the artificial reef, it would not take long for oyster larvae — or spat — floating in the Cape Fear River to find the reef and attach themselves to it.

"By the end of summer, we'll probably see some oyster spat growing on there," he said, adding that the reef, which is easily accessible by kayakers and canoers, also is expected to become a recreational fishing hot spot in future years.

Artificial Reefs Protect Shorelines

Along with all of its habitat and water quality benefits, the artificial reef also will act as a natural breakwater to help protect Carolina Beach State Park's shoreline that is regularly buffeted by the commercial and recreational boat traffic that travels along the Cape Fear.

Living shorelines like oyster reefs are increasingly gaining traction with scientists and officials looking to stabilize and protect eroding shorelines — a problem that is likely to increase as climate change supercharges sea-level rise and brings bigger and stronger tropical storms to coastal areas.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), living shorelines purify water, buffer floods, reduce erosion, store carbon and create habitat for a host of marine animals.

The move toward building natural coastline protection instead of more traditional bulkheads and riprap comes as officials focus more on resilience as they plan for how communities will adapt to climate change. Federal and local studies have found evidence that shorelines with intact natural coastal habitats not only see less damage but bounce back more quickly from severe storms.

Living shorelines also can move with the water, rolling inland as water levels rise, the Star News noted. They also bounce back quickly, requiring little or no upkeep aside from removing trash and other debris that might harm the grass and marine life or limit sunlight.

Funding for the artificial reef project came as part of the clean-up agreement for the polluted Kerr-McGee Superfund site on the Cape Fear 15 mi. upstream from Carolina Beach State Park in the Brunswick County community of Navassa.

Other parts of the restoration project include restoring 10 acres of wetlands in the state park and the construction of 2,000 ft. of living shoreline to help the park deal with erosion problems.

"This really is one of those projects that has multiple benefits for the environment, the park and for fishermen and we're glad to be part of it," Byrum said as another load of crushed concrete headed out to begin its second life submerged in the shallow waters of the Cape Fear River.