Extinction Rebellion has targeted the largest private residential ship on the planet left to mothball off the British coast.
A new offshoot of the environmental group, Ocean Rebellion, led a protest against The World residential ship in Falmouth, Cornwall.
The group claims the ship ’emits ten times more greenhouse gases per person per mile than a jumbo jet’.
‘Engagement with The World is the first of many actions designed to illuminate the processes of ocean degradation and shift stakeholders from ocean harm to ocean repair,’ Ocean Rebellion said.
Offshoot of Extinction Rebellion Ocean Rebellion staged a demonstration against theplanet’s largest private residential ship
The group projected protest messages onto the ship including one that said ‘The World is polluting our world’
The World, which has 165 apartments, has remained empty in Cornwall since all residents had to leave the ship because of the pandemic in March.
Ocean Rebellion projected slogans onto the side of the ship, which included ‘The World is destroying our world’ and ‘Sort your ship out’.
They were accompanied by a ‘polar bear’, who boarded the ship’s bow to join the call for cruise shipping to stop.
The group claimed the ship was ‘directly responsible for melting over 200,000 square metres of sea ice each year rendering polar bears homeless, and bringing them to the brink of extinction.’
The World has questioned the accuracy of these figures.
Protestors also said the ship being anchored in Falmouth means ‘there is a huge increase in air pollution as engines are regularly turned over in the harbour sending out sulphur emissions equivalent to 600,000 cars.’
The residential ship allows people to buy luxurious apartments and travel the world while they live on board.
The ship’s website states The World will explore six continents and more 100 ports in 2021, including calls in South America, Eastern Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Greenland, North America, and Central America.
Residents and guests will also embark on two expeditions throughout Antarctica/South Georgia/the Falkland Islands, and the White Sea/Russian Arctic.
‘Sort your ship out’ was another slogan projected onto the World as Ocean Rebellion claimed the ship ’emits ten times more greenhouse gases per person per mile than a jumbo jet’
The group also said the ship was ‘directly responsible for melting over 200,000 square metres of sea ice each year rendering polar bears homeless’
Ocean Rebellion claimed: ‘Travelling these distances means that each of The World’s apartments has a hundred times the emissions of an average European apartment.
‘That’s 380,309kg CO2 per year – the weight of a Boeing 747 airplane.
‘Yearly ‘The World’ expeditions are responsible for the melting of 234,970 square metres of sea ice, destroying the very environments that The World’s residents travel to see.’
A spokesperson for The World disputed the figures used by the group, as well as how the numbers were calculated and said that it had not been contacted for a statement or fact checking purposes.
They added: ‘The World, Residences at Sea, recognises the importance of being environmentally conscious and is committed to respecting the environment through a variety of programmes, practices and green initiatives that aim to preserve, protect or restore the natural environment as well as the vessel.
‘The ship’s Our Green World initiative is a sustainable lifestyle programme that positively impacts The World, those aboard, and the environments in which it sails.
‘The ship continues to seek new technologies to reduce fuel consumption, emissions, and its carbon footprint to remain a ‘green’ vessel.
‘As a privately owned residential ship, our low passenger count compared to our size equates to a relatively low environmental impact.
‘The World is a clean class vessel that conforms to industry best practices regarding emissions, water treatment, sewage plant and waste management systems.
‘It operates on low sulphur (less than 0.1 per cent sulphur) marine gas oil, the cleanest marine fuel available and has a ‘zero discharge to sea’ policy – no solid garbage of any kind is released to sea, even when permitted by international pollution regulations.
‘A dedicated health, safety and environmental officer on board is responsible for oversight of occupational safety, environmental and public health policies, procedures, and systems on board.’
The spokesperson said that all residents, guests and non-essential crew disembarked by 20 March.
They added: ‘The vessel has not had a positive COVID-19 case on board and none of its residents, guests or crew have tested positive since leaving the vessel.
‘The World is currently in lay-berth in Falmouth, United Kingdom.
‘A return to service date has not yet been released.’
The World is privately owned and home to approximately 150 families from 19 countries and has an average resident and guest occupancy of 150 to 200 people.
The World has 165 apartments, has remained empty in Cornwall since all residents had to leave the ship because of the pandemic in March
The spokesperson added: ‘The decision to lay-up the private, residential yacht was not easy, however was deemed essential.
‘Protecting the health and safety of our residents, guests and crew is our number one priority.
‘We look forward to resuming operations and welcoming our residents back once we can safely do so by following industry best practices, maintaining our high standards and working in cooperation with global public health authorities, local port officials and government agencies around the world.’
Property on The World starts at $2 million (£1, 526,230) which is owned by the ship’s 130 families from all around the world.
A small number are put up for resale every year and there is a waiting list for certain room sizes, including three-bedroom flats and a six-bedroom penthouse suite that can accommodate up to 12 people.
The annual ownership fees are based on square footage.
The World is usually occupied by 150 to 200 residents or guests at a time, with the average owner spending three to six months on board over the course of a year.