Artificial Intelligence: Problems at Boscombe Reef
At the end of last month Boscombe Reef in the UK, Europe's first artificial reef, was closed. Holes had apparently opened up in the structure and the local media were reporting 'dangerous riptides' occurring around the reef. Fearing litigation, the local council made the wave off limits to surfers and asked ASR, the company that constructed it, to inspect and repair the reef.
It was yet another chapter in what's become a complicated saga for Boscombe Reef and also for ASR.
ASR are based in Raglan, New Zealand (although they've recently been purchased by an American company), and they are involved in many facets of coastal management: research, modelling, coastal protection, and, in the case of Boscombe Reef, artificial reef construction.
Despite their extensive credentials and experience in creating multi purpose reefs - reefs that combine coastal protection with wave riding - Boscombe Reef is only the second time that ASR has constructed a reef purely for recreational purposes. Speaking to Dr Shaw Mead, a Technical Director at ASR, he was explicit in the nature of the company's work. "At ASR", Mead says "we're more concerned with coastal protection, not creating surf breaks."
But create surf breaks they have. First was the Mount Maunganui Reef in New Zealand and now Boscombe. ASR could hardly be blamed for moving into the artificial reef market as it appears to be an industry with unrealised potential. Last March I attended a symposium at Bondi, 'The International Surfing Reef Symposium'. Also in attendance were directors of numerous artificial reef start up companies along with established construction companies looking to expand their product base. Hands were shaken and cards were swapped. Despite there being just three artificial reefs in the world constructed solely for surfing there are many companies preparing themselves for a rapid expansion in demand. I imagine they'd all be watching Boscombe with interest.
The idea for an artificial reef at Boscombe was conceived by the local council, Bournemouth Council, and was intended to be the focal point of a planned economic revival. With Boscombe Reef as its centrepiece Bournemouth would once again become a desired tourist destination. With that socio-economic goal in mind tenders went out for the reef and ASR won the contract.
Construction of the reef began in late 2007 and was finished in early 2009. Since it opened there have been mixed reports about the reef and how it works. Yet Shaw Mead is adamant that ASR have fulfilled their part of the contract. That is, they've created a reef, with corresponding wave quality, that operates at the level expected of them from the council as set out in the contract.
Despite this claim, many local surfers have voiced their discontent at the wave quality in various forums. Following the logic, if those surfers thought Boscombe Reef was going to deliver longer and better shaped waves then they misread the paperwork and set their expectations too high, or they believed the media reports that featured headlines such as: 'Pipeline Comes To Bournemouth'. Bournemouth, for those that don't know, is situated in the English Channel, on a stretch of coast that receives only short windswells. The North Shore it aint and never will be.
Complaints about wave quality are one thing, but now that the reef has now been closed a new wave of bad press has begun in the English media. ASR were quick to respond. They had someone dive the reef last weekend and found that the only damage to the reef is a split in one of the sandbag containers, most likely caused by a boat propellor. The rest of the structure is sound. A replacement container is currently being manufactured and Shaw believes the reef will be opened again in mid-May.
Putting reef design and wave quality aside for the moment it would appear to me that ASR have made two errors in the handling of the Boscombe Reef project, both mistakes concerning their media management. The first was not managing the expectation of the locals correctly and the second was not controlling the flow of information to the media.
On the flow of media information: I've followed the Boscombe Reef project since it was first proposed and there are a couple of recurring features in the mainstream reporting of it. One is that a high percentage of stories quote the reef as 'having been designed to create 13 foot waves'.
Where I'm from, if someone says the waves are '13 feet' eyebrows will be raised - it's a fair indicator that a person doesn't know what they're talking about. So I asked Shaw about the random but recurring number and he gave a knowing laugh. He'd also noticed how it was regularly quoted in the press yet had no idea how it began. ASR, according to Shaw, had never claimed 13 foot waves would break on Boscombe Reef. He considered the frequency of the 'fact' a testament to how lazy and incorrect much of the journalism surrounding the reef had been. A reporter must have conjured it years ago and it had since been copied into each subsequent story till it became lore.
Yet, in defence of the lazy journalists, correct information on the reef isn't easy to come by. It's there alright, buried on the Bournemouth Council website, but the incorrect information is far more prevalent and, most importantly, none of it has been refuted in comment sections or in counter articles. If it hasn't been refuted, then why not repeat it?
On managing expectations: It's a fine line between selling an expensive artificial reef to a paying council – with all the hyperbole and sales talk that involves – and telling the locals who'll surf it to keep their expectations in check. And when talk of the reef's expense comes up – originally estimated at £1.4 million (AUD $2.1 million) but which more than doubled to £3 million (AUD $4.6 million) – many surfers expect a better result then what's currently on offer.
To make matters harder for ASR the locals who do like Boscombe Reef don't want to spruik it publicly. According to Dan, a local bodyboarder I spoke to, "People rubbish Boz (Boscombe Reef) but that's fine by us. Less people the better." Which is easily understood from a local surfer's perspective but doesn't bode well for ASR's media campaign.
Also, when it comes to judging the quality of the wave at Boscombe the opinions are as subjective as the viewpoints. What one person calls an acceptable wave another calls rubbish. The type of wave a bodyboarder wants is different than that of a longboarder which is different again to what a shortboarders seeks. Each craft has a different measure of a good wave and each will have differing opinions on Boscombe.
As mentioned earlier, Boscombe is the second artificial reef that ASR has built purely for surfing and they've drawn a lot of media flack for their part in it. Considering this, I asked Shaw if it would be the last recreational reef that ASR would build. The phone went silent for a few moments. "They are not our preference," was Shaw's coy and non-committal answer. I got the impression that he'd spent a lot of time considering the question.
For the artificial reef industry to expand and realise its potential then prospective companies would do well to learn from the Boscombe experience. The reality is that councils and local governments will be bankrolling artificial reefs and each project needs to be seen as a worthwhile investment in the eyes of their constituents. If Boscombe Reef gets bad press – irrespective of whether it is deserved or not – it will set a precedent as to whether other councils follow their lead.
Comments
i know that this article is relating to how much hype incorrect pieces of information can cause, but fair dinkum i would have a go at that and i am a shortboarder
Whinging Poms anyone?
I live near and (occasionally) surf at one of the three surfing artificial reefs - Cables in WA. Rule number one: a reef doesn't produce swell. When it works Cables can be awesome if you like crowds. But we're talking maybe 10 days a year. And last winter, less than half that.
I have lived on the Gold coast coast for the past 8 years but im origionally from Bournemouth. I love surfing here in Oz and was really looking forward to going back to Bmth to try the "Surf Reef". All i can say is that all the surfers go the other side of the pier as it is better. There was no swell at all when i went so i didnt get to try it but from whta i was told it never works. Appreciate the surf you have here guys. Australia is blessed. A surf reef at Surfers Paradise however would be a fantastic idea. As i understand it surf reefs are supposed to double the size of the wave. In Bournemouth that amounts to 6 inches into 12 if your lucky but putting one in to double the size and shape the waves at surfers. Well that would simply make the place what into What its name says it is. The Gold coast needs its tourists back and in my opinion turning Surfers Paradise into Surfers Paradise would be a good way to start.
colin, are you taking the piss? "Surf reefs are supposed to double the size of the wave".. where'd you hear that?
And, Surfers Paradise already has an artificial reef.
mr colin, one has the monopoly with speaking out of ones backside , and as such expect an apology!!!
This is a bit ironic - the reef ASR built in India primarily for coastal protection appears to produce a pretty surfable wave. Check
http://vimeo.com/11274816
Ok.
So i didnt know about the reef at surfers (narrowneck). My mistake. Not sure how its working. Is it any good?? The information on doubling a waves size with a surf reef comes from Bournemouth surf reefs website. http://www.bournemouthsurfreef.com/about-the-reef/ so no i wasnt taking the piss themalben or talking out of my arse. I just know the surf reef at Bournemouth is an expensive joke.
A couple of people who surf the reef give their opinion.
I live in Manly but Bournemouth is my hometown, I've watched the reef being built and seen it working.
And it works, it's more suited to bodyboarding, but it works. The problems highlighted in the article are correct. Ask any local surfer, who as you'd expect, knows a little about wave generation and the reefs location on the channel coast and you'll get realistic expectations. Ask anyone who has read a newspaper article or got caught up in the spin concerning the regeneration of a run down part of a British seaside town and you would think Hawaii is coming, and an army of bronzed surf gods.
Blame the press. The council tried to do something positive, they just choose the wrong place to build it and as you've said expected too much. Maybe moving France would have been a better way of spending the money ;)
Why doesn't anyone perform due diligence on these guys? I'm from Mt Maunganui and believe me the reef there hasn't added anything to the quality of surf or economic benefit. Pure snake oil, tough luck Bournemouth but you should have sent someone to the Mount to talk to locals there about its failure.
Someone will figure it out. But it going to take a long time before you get permission at most places.
After the first Reef symposium in about 2000 we were besotted by the potential for changing the ocean to suit us.
After our group getting funding from council, Port Corporation, Hunter advantage fund and many high profile community fund-raisers we were all keen about reef protection as an option for the Stockton peninsula.
Since the Port has a very large split hopper barge in continual operation the larger offshore reefs were what would supply an unique opportunity for many reefs at minimum cost. There is more to see about large reef protection here
http://s1237.photobucket.com/albums/ff467/Robert_Sirasch/
The report that they supplied was for two patented $1m mini reefs at the ends of the existing revetment wall.
We saw that the larger barrier reef with proven results in Egypt was the better thing to pursue.
I (self funded) went to see the Mt Manganui Reef and the one at Opunake to investigate for myself, our group, the community and thus the rest of the funders of the study.
The Mt Manganui reef was the same as what was being offered as a pigeon pair"
The Stockton investigation process was beginning and reefs were still on the table - ASR offering us a pigeon pair solution the same as the patent Mt Manganui reef -but two off..
It was my sad task (after being an advocate for ASr's and assisting to fund them doing a study ) to report to council and the community that I found the results and ongoing process of Asr's disappointing.
That ended Asr's for Stockton for the foreseeable future.
An artificial headland (with possible all tide surf on both sides) is now the preferred option, after Danish Hydraulics labs did a very comprehensive study on what was causing the problem.
I still think that a existing operational very large split hopper suction cutter dredge with 1000cum capacity could be very effective in sand bag filling thus very large reef building. But that's for the future to determine.
Stabilized material in large bags could still build reefs - but that might be when sea levels are 500mm higher than now? Don't you hate it when you have ideas that are before their time ( -if they will have a time at all?
I guess that's better than wasting a lot of time , effort and money on things that will disappoint.
Yet more problems for ASR at Boscombe Reef. The reef has been closed since March 2011 due to damage from a boat propellor. A deadline of May 31st was given to fix the reef yet ASR aren't even on site.
To read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-dorset-18265006
if $4 million bought you an exact replica of teahupoo, pipe, g land etc it would probably be money well spent, when you think of how many people will travel across the globe to surf it. However when $4 million buys you what looks like a small sideshore day at redsands it seems a massive rip off. The problem is that the people voting to fund these projects probably have little knowledge of surfing or the elements required to produce great waves. Even if you put a fantastic artificial reef anywhere on the east coast of oz its either going to be onshore or too small to break properly for about 300 days of the year.
also if people are viewing artificial reefs as the answer to overcrowding in the surf well sorry but it aint gonna fix it. Unless you want to be taxed a hundred bucks every time you paddle out it won't be affordable to install many of these reefs, and any installed will just go into popular surfing locations like sydney and the gold coast where they will make a negligible impact on spreading the hordes.
Amazing developments at Boscombe Reef: Shaw Mead, director at ASR, who was interviewed in the article above, claims to have resigned as director at ASR 18 months ago: http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/9774571.Surf_reef_maestro_Shaw_Mea...
Mead has left to establish his own artificial reef company, eCoast.
Not a bad gig if you can get it, get paid to design and construct a reef, when it doesn't work you leave the first mob, start up a new company to review the reef and suggest and implement fixes.
Rinse and repeat.
Spoke to a mate who was in Bournemouth over the Xmas period. The artificial reef has effectively disappeared - apparently a boat ploughed into it some time ago, and its propeller chopped up the geotextile bags, which have since washed ashore. He was there during one of the best swells of the year and it wasn't really breaking at all - everyone was surfing the nearby pier. Word on the street is that the council have essentially written off the entire project.
However, he also pointed out that the reef did have some benefits - it's cleaned up the Bournemouth beachfront area, which used to be somewhat of a shithole (and with a major hard drug problem). The reef project apparently revitalised the town to the point where it's now a much nicer place than it ever used to be, with a thriving tourism scene to boot.
Kinda ironic that it took a failed artificial reef project to give the town a much needed lift in aesthetics.
Using car tyres as material for an artificial reef?
Maybe not. The French just hauled 2,500 tyres up from a reef offshore from Cannes after they proved an ecological disaster. And there are apparently 250,000 more tyres dotted off the coast of France.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/11603531/France-fishes-thousands-of-used-tyres-from-failed-artificial-reef-off-Cannes.html
More than happy to put my hand up to have several artificial reefs constructed between the Middleton to Goolwa stretch - Don't care how much it costs and if it produces waves then they can make it out of bloody radioactive waste if they want - After all, this stretch of coast cant be much more laughable than it is already!
Once bitten, twice shyster...
Ten years after Boscombe Reef, UK, was built, and quickly deemed a failure - a three million pound white elephant - the good folk at Bournemouth are giving fake waves another shot. This time a 35 million pound investment in Surf Lakes '5 Waves' technology.
http://wavepoolmag.com/surf-lakes-wave-pool-coming-to-bournemouth/
This surprises me. I reckon there's a bit of over-reach going on with wave pools at the moment, they seem to be popping up everywhere and I'm not sure I can see the long term return on investment for the owners in most cases. Generally I'm quite supportive of wavepools (enjoyed my surf at Snowdonia) but there's a wave pool already under construction in Bristol right now which is really only two hours away from Bournemouth. Given that the wave pools have a pretty short season in the UK due to the weather I struggle to see this lasting - or maybe even getting off the ground. More power to them if it does though and I'm sure the local surfers will be appreciative of it given the general lack of south coast swells!
Why would any one be stupid enough to invest in Surf lakes '5 waves' technology.
A few forum commenters have pointed out Surf Lakes method of wave generation is flawed, and guess what, Surf Lakes latest patent shows they have evolved the plunger design to focus wave energy better, but it is still a limited system producing tapering waves, also the patent diagram shows that the latest plunger shape only produces one wave not 5.
It will be interesting to see if they can produce multiple waves by grouping the new plunger shape into a square shape with 4 concave faces.
Investors need to realise that wave pool designs are constantly being improved and quite a few designs will become obsolete.
Check out Kellys latest patent, completely different design to what you see at Lemoore. Pretty mind blowing actually, and these are only early days in the evolution of wave pools.
Reading between the lines of his latest patent, I reckon his team has discovered ways to get turbulence to settle quicker and therefore bring down the waiting time between waves at the Lemoore pool.