Intellireefs
IntelliReefs, a division of the non-profit organisation Reef Life Foundation, specialises in innovative reef restoration systems.
Globally, coral reefs are dying at unprecedented rates with predictions suggesting that they could disappear entirely in just a few decades.
Conservation organizations have adopted artificial reefs as a restoration strategy to build back that three-dimensional complexity that would take upwards of decades to reconstruct with natural processes alone.
However, some are not scalable solutions and use materials that are not durable.Introducing IntelliReefs, bio-inspired marine structures made with Oceanite. Oceanite is a complex matrix of minerals, explicitly developed for diverse coral growth and immediate integration with local ecosystems.
It is designed to enable precision control of pH values, surface chemistry, and texture. Artificial reefs made from it can be fine-tuned and customized down to the nanoscale to support site, species, and function-specific conservation goals. IntelliReefs use Oceanite to mimic natural reef development and foster growth on a large scale over a concise amount of time.
A pilot project at St. Maarten showed that IntelliReefs foster more biodiversity than their natural counterparts in a mere 14 months. IntelliReefs are customized to species and habitat needs and can be cast in large-scale "monolithic" custom designs or deployed in units that enable year-to-year, block-by-block expansion. Each structure can be customized down to the nano-scale with exclusive Oceanite mineral mixtures designed to enable optimal growth and resilience for conservation targets.
By introducing IntelliReefs into aquatic ecosystems, multiple benefits can be realized Real Estate Protection: IntelliReefs protect coastlines against higher storm surge intensity. Healthy reefs reduce 97% of wave energy. Revenue: IntelliReefs mooring stations can generate min. $50-$150 per boat, and double as oyster, fish, and coral habitats. Fish & Other Marine Foods: Billions of people need to eat fish daily, keeping reefs healthy provides necessary protein meals. Environmental Defenses: IntelliReefs double as a safe boat mooring system to keep anchors off corals.
Eco-Tourism: Scuba divers can plant Reeflings and assess IntelliReef coral growth. IntelliReefs collaborates with the Global Island Partnership, GoPro, Absolute vorticity, and many more in its mission to restore dying reefs worldwide.
Its efforts have also been recognized at the UN Ocean Conference.
