The AIDAbella in Palma. | Archive

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Data compiled by the Council of Mallorca's Sustainable Tourism Observatory from Balearic Ports Authority and European Maritime Safety Agency figures indicate that the AIDAbella, operated by Germany's AIDA Cruises, is the most polluting ship that comes to Mallorca.

The data relate to 2021 and are the most up to date that are available. They show that the ship releases 4,931.24 kilos of carbon dioxide per nautical mile. When entering and leaving territorial sea - a distance of twelve nautical miles - the ship releases 118.3 tonnes of CO2 for the whole round trip; 24 nautical miles are equivalent to just over 44 kilometres.

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To give an idea of how much this is, a petrol car emits an average of 140 grams of CO2 per kilometre. For the same distance that the AIDAbella travels in Mallorca's territorial sea, a car would emit 6.2 kilos of carbon dioxide. The cruise ship's emission is therefore equivalent to that of 19,087 cars.

The second most polluting ship, according to the data, is the MSC Preziosa, which emits 2,657.08 kilos of CO2 per nautical mile. The third is the MSC Fantasia - 2,513.39 kilos. All types of ships that enter and leave Palma are taken into account in the data. The fifteen most polluting ships are all cruise ships. Goods ferries release at most 773.73 kilos of CO2.

From April 12 to 15, anti-cruise ship organisations from the likes of Palma, Barcelona, Valencia, Marseille, Corsica and Venice will be holding events in Barcelona and Tarragona. Among those taking part will be Margalida Ramis, the spokesperson for environmentalists GOB. The four days will consider "a model incompatible with the climate crisis".