Tidal Boom

The tidal boom  (beach boom) has been developed to protect coast lines and rivers with high tidal movements. The boom has an air buoyancy chamber and two water ballast chambers. The boom sits upright on the exposed ground as the tide goes out. The water chambers form a barrier that prevents oil, carried in by the tide, from passing under the boom and up onto the beach.

The boom lifts off the ground when the water depth reaches 300mm. Oil is contained at all times because at a water depth of less than 300mm the boom is sitting on the ground. The boom is inflated with a back pack air blower. A small petrol driven pump fills the water ballast chambers with water drawn from the deployment location.