From early times, man has created artificial reefs for a variety of reasons: some to form barriers to hold back creeks or streams, others to aid in rudimentary fishing while yet others were to create habitat for marine creatures, primarily, and for recreational divers, generally. An additional reason for the more recent planned and executed creation of artificial reefs is to preserve historical wrecks from over-anxious divers and to give these divers a preferred underwater site to explore; an added bonus is to aid local tourism. This story builds on the idea that former surface vessels can be used to make artificial reefs that serve as a habitat for marine critters and as a prime dive site for recreational divers. The story centres around five former Royal Canadian Navy destroyers, one former RCN maintenance vessel, as well as one former Air Canada Boeing 737and one former coastal freighter. Each of these artificial reefs is located in selected coastal waters off the west and east coasts of North America. Read how a cool beer combined with a paper napkin were the genesis of a world class organisation that set the standard for changing former warships into artificial reefs that has been copied by diving enthusiasts in both north and south hemispheres.
