Miami's Coral Reef Fix: Underwater Car Sculptures

Miami Beach has a unique art project designed to goose the growth of the reefs
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Nov 3, 2025 8:29 AM CST
Underwater Car Sculptures Will Drive Coral Reef Growth
Workers supervise as they submerge a marine grade concrete car that will be attached with native corals as part of a underwater sculpture park on Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025, in Miami Beach, Fla.   (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

South Florida is seeing a wave of new cars, but they won't add to traffic or lengthen anyone's commute. That's because the cars are made of marine-grade concrete and were installed underwater, reports the AP. Over several days late last month, crews lowered 22 life-sized cars into the ocean, several hundred feet off South Beach. The project was organized by a group that pioneers underwater sculpture parks as a way to create human-made coral reefs. "Concrete Coral," commissioned by the nonprofit REEFLINE, will soon be seeded with 2,200 native corals that have been grown in a nearby Miami lab. The project is partially funded by a $5 million bond from the city of Miami Beach. The group is also trying to raise $40 million to extend the potentially 11-phase project along an underwater corridor just off the city's 7-mile-long coastline.

"I think we are making history here," Ximena Caminos, the group's founder, said. "It's one of a kind, it's a pioneering, underwater reef that's teaming up with science, teaming up with art." She conceived the overall plan with architect Shohei Shigematsu, and the artist Leandro Erlich designed the car sculptures for the first phase. Colin Foord, who runs REEFLINE's Miami coral lab, said they'll soon start the planting process and create a forest of soft corals over the car sculptures, which will serve as a habitat swarming with marine life. "I think it really lends to the depth of the artistic message itself of having a traffic jam of cars underwater," Foord said. "So nature's gonna take back over, and we're helping by growing the soft corals."

Besides being a testing ground for new coral transplantation, Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner expects the project to generate local jobs with ecotourism experiences like snorkeling, diving, kayaking, and paddleboard tours. The reefs will be located about 20 feet below the surface of the water and about 800 feet from shore. Caminos acknowledges that the installation won't fix all of the problems—which are as big as climate change and sea level rise—but she said it can serve as a catalyst for dialogue about the value of coastal ecosystems. "We can show how ... we can all tackle a man-made problem with man-made solutions," Caminos said.

Read These Next
Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X