Cruise ships have long been a thorn in the side of environmentalists.
They pollute the seas and disrupt the maritime ecosystem.
For this reason, one thing caused explosives again.
This is certainly not how the 800 passengers on the “Viking Orion” cruise ship imagined their vacation: instead of visiting one place after another, they recently had to stay on board for days.
The luxury steamer had been banned from docking in Sydney Harbour.
The reason for this is curious: Apparently, the cruiser's hull was overgrown with microorganisms, barnacles, mussels and algae.
Ship is overgrown - what is bio-fouling and what are the consequences?
This phenomenon is also known under the term "bio-fouling".
A slimy film usually forms here, for example when a ship does not sail for a long time.
This is the ideal breeding ground for unwanted microorganisms.
The problem with this is not only that the "maritime fouling" causes long-term damage to the ship, but can also have devastating effects on the sensitive ecosystem in the sea.
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The Viking Orion cruise ship was only allowed to dock in Sydney Harbor after it was cleaned.
(icon picture)
© Grant Rooney/Imago
Finally, when ships bring foreign organisms into other waters, the result is that native species are displaced and the new ones spread.
In addition, the additional weight of the biomass on the hull increases the drag.
As a result, the ship uses more fuel to move forward, which not only costs the shipping company more in the end, but also emits more emissions.
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Cleaning, non-stick coating, regular driving.
This helps with bio fouling
The authorities in Australia and New Zealand did not want to take this risk, which is why they have forbidden the heavily overgrown luxury steamer from entering one of their ports.
As a result, the cruise ship had to anchor 22 kilometers off the Australian coast in international waters.
There it was cleaned by divers and was finally allowed to dock in Sydney.
Environmental drama: These seven travel destinations are completely destroyed "thanks" to cruise ships
Environmental drama: These seven travel destinations are completely destroyed "thanks" to cruise ships
But it's not that harmless either: Depending on the cleaning technology, the microorganisms can continue to get into the water and pollute the environment during the cleaning process.
However, bio-fouling is a problem that is easy to fix.
To prevent this from happening in the first place, there are already special non-stick coatings, so-called "anti-fouling paints", which are applied to the outer skin of the ship's hull.
That and regular driving prevent organisms from settling.
Rubric list image: © Grant Rooney/Imago