10 Years On: Watch expert interviews
What were the effects of the Sea Empress oil spill at the time, and its long-term impacts? What has been learned? Will it happen again? In these exclusive interviews filmed for the BBC Wales TV documentary 'Sea Empress: 10 Years On' that didn't make the final cut, marine life and pollution experts give us their verdict.
Phil Newman, Skomer Marine Nature Reserve
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Initially the oil slick started to head westwards towards the island bird reserves of Skomer and Skokholm, but a change in wind direction took most of it into Carmarthen Bay and the Bristol Channel. In this interview Phil reflects on how the islands got off relatively lightly - though marine life under the waterline around the coast was seriously affected. What went on beneath the waves?
Phil also talks about what might happen in the event of another spill in the area, and tells us how smaller pollution incidents happen around the Welsh coast every day. Phil says, "There's got to be a point where nature just can't take it anymore."
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Jon Moore, marine ecologist & expert on oil pollution
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Iolo talks to to Jon about the impact of the oil in the short, medium and long term, and reflects on how the ecology of the area has staged a remarkable recovery. Did the use of dispersants help or hinder the recovery? Why are some beaches of greater environmental interest than others? Was it an effective clean-up? Are there any signs, ten years on, of what went on here?
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Julian Cremona, Dale Fort Field Studies Council centre
Julian Cremona had only been in his job for six weeks, managing the important environmental work undertaken at the converted military fort on the Pembrokeshire coast. In this series of clips Julian talks about his first reactions as the news broke, how shorelife was affected as time went on, and the role of the Centre in assessing the long-term impact on the area's wildlife.
Clip 1: At the beginning"Two of my staff came knocking at my door one dark February evening to say a tanker had run aground...it was only 2-300 metres off shore. It was a big ship....as it turned out, it was an incredible experience, one which I will never forget."
Clip 2: The first few days
"As the sitution progressed, we could see the Sea Empress moving off the shore, we could see it moving around. It clearly wasn't stable..."
Clip 3: Monitoring the changes
"The interesting thing about monitoring populations and seaweeds on the shores, is to see the almost yearly changes that take place naturally.... (the research we'd already done) showed that changes were already happening to the population here..."
Julian also talks about how the cleaning of some of the amenity beaches with heavy vehicles caused some problems, and how long it took for the resident populations to return to normal.
Clip 4: Looking back - Ten Years On
Julian reflects on how, ten years on, the beaches have returned to the same pristine conditions as they had before the spill. That's not to say they're the same - all ecosystems change over time. Julian also talks about how the centre teaches over 4,000 students every year, and how many researchers visit the centre as part of their research into the Sea Empress spill.Clip 5: "It's almost certain to happen again"
Julian believes another disaster like the Sea Empress is likely to happen again, somewhere in Britain, because lessons are not learnt as often as they should be.
"Within the scientific community things will get published and people learn - but do the authorities really take it on board?"
These interviews were conducted during the production of the BBC Wales TV programme 'Sea Empress: 10 Years On' in 2006, produced and directed by John Trefor.
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