Today my good friend Carlos and I made a morning dive excursion off of Miami to visit the Neptune Memorial Reef. I had heard about this artificial reef quite a while ago when it had been originally proposed to simply be a “replica” of Atlantis. It seems that the goals of the project shifted towards a more realistic and profitable goal by becoming the world’s first underwater cemetery and memorial park. The first phase of construction was completed in November 2007, and I’ve been looking forward to taking a first-hand look ever since.

The idea is simple, brilliant, and ecologically positive. The cremated remains of a loved one are mixed with cement and secured into the ever-growing Neptune Memorial Reef. Not only does this consume less terrestrial real estate than a traditional cemetery, it also creates an artificial reef habitat. Over time this cement will become encrusted with all the variety of coral reef organisms found on nearby, natural coral reefs. A guaranteed reincarnation of sorts.

Already, in less than a year, large numbers of schooling fish (grunts, snappers) have begun to congregate around the site. Spotted eagle rays cruise through regularly. Smaller tropical fish (damsels, tangs, triggers, puffers, etc, etc) seek refuge and forage around the statues. Sponges and a few soft coral species have already begun their colonization, and hard corals certainly won’t be far behind.

(above) Carijoa riisei, a non-photosynthetic Caribbean soft coral, is often one of the first coral colonizers of shipwrecks and artificial reefs. Photo taken at the Neptune Memorial Reef August 1st 2008.

Although relatively small in size at the moment, Neptune Memorial Reef has plans to eventually cover 16 acres of sea floor with room for up to 125,000 memorials.

Neptune Memorial Reef is located about 3.25 miles east of Key Biscayne in about 45 feet (14 m) of water in the middle of a sandy expanse of flat sea floor. It is free and open to the public to dive, and there are several convenient mooring buoys to tie up your boat. However, the GPS coordinates listed on the NMR’s website are considerably incorrect (oddly). The correct numbers are:

N 25. 42.062
W 80. 05.399

A number of local dive operators offer the Neptune Memorial Reef as a dive site. It’s definitely worth checking out, but to be honest, at this early stage of construction, it’s really only a half tank dive, so it’s possible that you might decide your money is better spent on a larger, older wreck in the area.

Despite the addition of the photos you see here, their site could definitely use some updating and fine tuning (correct GPS coordinates would be a start). If you love the ocean, or know someone who does, spread the word. “Burial” rates are seem reasonable, starting at $900 for a simple plaque (I’m certain I read this somewhere, but I can’t find any prices on their site to confirm), ranging upwards for more elaborate statue memorials.

Tags: Coral Morphologic, Miami, Neptune Memorial Reef

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