Great Egg Artificial Reef

Great Egg Artificial Reef

7.2 Nautical Miles off Atlantic City
Depth: 50-70 ft [download]

Great Egg Artificial Reef

This reef is composed largely of Army tanks and tire units ( not shown ) and concrete castings. Minimum clearance at mean low water is 40 feet.


M60 tanks reef
M60 tanks undergo a thorough cleaning before use as reefs

The Artificial Reef Program used four types of obsolete Army armored vehicles as artificial reef materials off the New Jersey coast. These were cleaned at local military bases, loaded onto barges for transport, and pushed off at their final destination. Once the Army had disposed of its excess inventory, the program ceased, around 1999. The Artificial Reef Program has sunk almost 400 tanks altogether, far too many to list them here in this website.


rock reef
A hopper barge full of rock

All manner of concrete, steel, and stone rubble from dredging, demolition projects, and other construction is used as artificial reef materials. This material is generally available at very low cost or free from construction companies who are more than happy to get rid of it. Transportation costs determine where this material is used by the Reef Program.



weight belt

Without a doubt, the one item of dive gear that more people complain about is their weight belt. These things are just plain uncomfortable, and more so for northern divers, who usually need extra weight to compensate for a thick wetsuit or drysuit. Weight belts are also tricky for beginners to set up, put on, and adjust properly, and are one of the greatest sources of difficulty that I have observed with students.

But there's a simple solution: get rid of it. With the plethora of weight-integrated BCs on the market today, there is simply no reason not to get a weight-integrated BC. Some of the excellent reasons to do this include:

Printed from njscuba.net