Wood Slick hits Beaches of Sussex

Published on 24-01-2008 by Dr Paul Beckett

Phlorum staff have noticed the large amount of wooden planks littering the beaches of Sussex when travelling to and from work over the past few days. This has been due to the sinking of the Ice Prince, 26 miles off the DorsetCoast, which has resulted in a ‘wood slick’ forming over the weekend and the planks drifting onto beaches many miles further along the coast.

Among our staff members, Huw has been directly affected by this minor environmental disaster since the coastguard turned him away from his usual surfing spot due to the floating debris and piles of planks on the beaches. Thankfully, potentially significant damage to the coastal environment from fuel leaking from the Ice Prince has been averted as rough seas have effectively dispersed any oil slicks.