Belgium builds sand berm to protect coastline from oil spill

A sand berm was constructed on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday off the Belgian coast to stop oil from the sunken Dutch freighter Flinterstar from reaching the Zwin nature reserve, reports Gazet van Antwerpen.

The Flinterstar sunk after colliding with a tanker in the North Sea off Zeebrugge early Tuesday morning. All 12 of the crew were brought to safety.

While a cleanup operation is underway for oil leaking from the Flinterstar, the Belgian authorities still called for the construction of the sandberm “in order to prevent an environmental disaster”, according to Carl Decaluwé, governor of the province of West Flanders.

The Zwin nature reserve, which lies partly in Belgium and partly in the Netherlands, is a unique habitat with rich vegetation, and a safe haven to numerous species of birds.