Next stop the REAL Atlantic! New York subway cars are dumped in the sea to create artificial reefs for millions of fish
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New York subway cars are the last thing you'd expect to come across in the vast, harsh expanse of the Atlantic Ocean.
But along the coast, from Delaware to South Carolina, a subsea network of these colossal vehicles have become home to millions of fish.
Now, Photographer Stephen Mallon has captured the dramatic process of transforming the city's subway in a series of stunning images.
Along the coast, from Delaware to South Carolina, a subsea network of these colossal vehicles have become home to millions of tiny fish
'Seeing these massive mechanisms being tossed into the ocean like a toy in the bathtub is a ping in my heart,' Mr Mallon writes.
'At first I was stunned, the moments of violent recycling, watching the water quickly adapt to its new underwater houses.
'After being pushed and stacked like a sardine in these subways cars over the past decade, it is nice to see the sardine actually getting one of these as its new steel condo.'
The 'Next Stop Atlantic' project saw Mr Callon capture four 'drops' and two 'load-ups' in a programme spanning three years.
Photographer Stephen Mallon has been able to capture the process of transforming the city's subway cars into artificial coral reefs
'Seeing these massive mechanisms being tossed into the ocean like a toy in the bathtub is a ping in my heart,' Mr Mallon said
'At first I was stunned, the moments of violent recycling, watching the water quickly adapt to its new underwater houses,' he added
On the left is the inside of one of the cars before it is tossed into the ocean (right). The images show the cars being dumped into the ocean like huge anchors, churning waves in their wake
The 'Next Stop Atlantic' project saw the New York photographer capture four 'drops' and two 'load-ups' in a project spanning three years.
The 18-ton stainless steel cars - minus wheels, windows and doors - are stacked two-high on a barge where a bucket crane with a specially designed hydraulic lift picks them up one by one.
The images show the cars being dumped into the ocean like huge anchors. While it may appear like an act of pollution, it is in fact the opposite.
After four decades carrying millions of New Yorkers, these subway cars are now home to millions of sea life.
'The Metropolitan Transit Authority's recycling program has been involved for the past decade, retiring over 2500 subways cars to the ocean to help rebuild underwater reefs along the eastern seabed,' the New York photographer explains.
'These are my images, seconds before these mass transit vessels join history in building homes for life under the sea.'
The reefs attract fish because they provide protection from predators, and generate food like mussels, shrimp and crabs that quickly colonise the structure.
About 95 per cent of the seabed off the U.S. mid-Atlantic coast is naturally bare sand, which is much less likely to attract fish.
Officials hope the new reefs will become home to such inshore species as black sea bass, tautog and summer flounder. These in turn should attract game like marlin, tuna and dolphin.
Overall, corals are estimated to generate $200 million (£131 million) annually in the U.S.
Mr Mallon's images will be on display at New York University's Kimmel Galleries from February 6th to March 15, 2015.
The Metropolitan Transit Authority's recycling program has been going for the past decade, retiring over 2500 subways cars to the ocean
Pictured on the right is some of the fabric from inside the cars (right), which are stripped before they are laid to rest beneath the waves
'These are my images, seconds before these mass transit vessels join history in building homes for life under the sea,' said Mr Mallon
After four decades carrying millions of New Yorkers, these subway cars are now home to millions of sea life, and act as artificial coral reefs
The cars attract fish because they provide protection from predators, and generate food like mussels and crabs that colonise the structure
The moment one of the cars gets dumped (left) Officials hope the new reefs created by the cars will become home to such inshore species as black sea bass, tautog and summer flounder. The cars were dumped on a stretch of coast from Delaware to South Carolina (right)
This image, along with others in the series. will be on display at New York University's Kimmel Galleries from February 6th to March 15, 2015
About 95 per cent of the seabed off the U.S. mid-Atlantic coast is naturally bare sand, which is much less likely to attract fish. These subway cars are expected to act as a home for them, now that they have come to the end of their useful life in New York
'After being pushed and stacked like a sardine in these subways cars over the past decade, it is nice to see the sardine actually getting one of these as its new steel condo,' said Mr Mallon
Overall, corals are estimated to generate $200 million (£131 million) annually in the U.S. This figure could increase in the future if schemes such as this one are successful. pictured is the inside of a subway car
The 18-ton stainless steel cars - minus wheels, windows and doors - are stacked two-high on a barge where a bucket crane with a specially designed hydraulic lift picked them up one by one
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