Smoked Out! Volleyball Club Flames Over Sauna on Millionaire's Beach

A Growing Controversy Over Wood-Fired Saunas on British Beaches

Spending the afternoon in a wood-fired sauna on the beach at Britain’s most exclusive seaside spot sounds idyllic. But for local volleyball players, it has turned into a source of frustration and health concerns.

On the Sandbanks peninsula in Poole, Dorset, where mansions can be worth more than £10 million, paying customers can warm up in the Saltwater Sauna. However, members of the Sandbanks Volleyball Club, who play just a few yards away, are less than impressed. They claim that the woodburner heating the sauna cabin gives off smoky fumes, leading to coughs, tight chests, and even difficulty breathing.

Club members are calling on the local council to either move the sauna or order it to run on electricity, as another sauna company has done with planning permission ten miles away at Southbourne Beach. This issue has sparked a debate over the impact of such facilities on nearby communities and public health.

Health Concerns and Frustrations

Mark Fry, second team captain of the Sandbanks Volleyball Club, described the situation as “absolutely awful.” He compared the experience to sitting next to someone smoking and said it affects his health. “I’m a non-smoker and it really affects me. It’s like somebody having a barbecue next to you,” he added.

Fry mentioned that when the wind is blowing the other way, the problem is less severe, but he believes that eight out of ten times, the smell is present. He has even had to leave the court due to the fumes. Despite complaining to the council, he received no response, and when he followed up, he was told the person handling the issue had left.

Julie Chadbourne, a 62-year-old volleyball player, echoed similar concerns. She goes to the beach in the evening to breathe fresh air and play outdoors instead of indoor volleyball. However, she has experienced difficulty breathing due to the fumes. “I have gone home rather than carrying on playing,” she said.

Environmental and Health Impacts

This issue comes at a time when a study presented at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Amsterdam found that wood-burning stoves can damage the lungs in a similar fashion to smoking. This raises questions about the safety of wood-fired saunas, especially in areas where people spend significant time outdoors.

Geoff Allen, chairman of Volleyball Dorset, noted that while the sauna itself is a good facility, the fuel used causes fumes to drift onto the courts. He estimated that over 100 people play there each week during the summer, and the conditions are not pleasant.

Responses from Authorities and Sauna Operators

A spokesman for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council stated that they had no record of any complaints since objections raised through the planning process. The sauna is subject to a condition that only approved wood from the Woodsure Certification Scheme can be burned.

The Saltwater Sauna also responded to the controversy. A spokesperson said, “We’ve welcomed over 180,000 customers at Sandbanks in just two years, many of them local. While many volleyball players have told us they experience no issues and are regular sauna users themselves, we made a small adjustment to our flues as a gesture of goodwill. Our saunas already meet strict planning conditions.”

Broader Implications and Questions

The controversy surrounding the Saltwater Sauna highlights a growing trend of sauna installations across Britain’s beaches. As these facilities become more popular, concerns about their environmental impact, fire risks, and health hazards for nearby residents continue to rise.

Could the proposed wood-fired sauna at Southbourne Beach spell environmental disaster with toxic fumes, fire risks, and health hazards for nearby residents? Can dramatic spa disputes leave neighbors steamed as trendy saunas take over Britain's richest beaches?

Local residents fiercely clash over a beach sauna – is it a beacon of wellness or a perilous threat to a world heritage coastal gem? Why are the recent surge in sauna popularity and resulting health risks causing experts to sound the alarm in the UK?

As the debate continues, it remains to be seen how local authorities will balance the demand for wellness facilities with the need to protect public health and the environment.