Before they were planted, these 25-square-foot miniature islands looked like green sponges — aptly enough, because the mats spun from recycled plastic bottles were soon drawing water to the roots of new plantings.
"Like a scrubber pad for pots and pans, that's what they feel like," said Joe Pirozek of the Ocean County Department of Parks and Recreation, as he took a break from kneeling over the pair of Biohaven floating islands. Around him students from the Marine Academy of Technology and Environmental Sciences used survey flags and an intricate plan to insert plant roots into the newly sodded foam.