Preventing the North Sea Collision From Echoing Deepwater
We probably won’t see oil-slicked seabirds this time, but that doesn’t mean damage hasn’t been done.
Smoke rises from the MV Solong cargo ship in the North Sea on March 11, 2025, after it collided with the MV Stena Immaculate tanker on March 10.
Photographer: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images
When we think of oil spills, the images that come to mind may include seabirds coated in black slime, huge iridescent slicks lapping onto shore and armies of wellington-clad cleaners armed with buckets. The spill in the North Sea is different yet may be no less harmful.
The focus in the coming days will be rightly on how the March 10 incident, described to me as being the equivalent of driving a car into a double-decker bus sitting in the middle of an empty car park, happened. But we’ll also need a detailed environmental assessment of the impacts on marine life.