Apres August - Flipbook - Page 22
SUSTAINABILITY
SETTING SAIL,
SUSTAINABLY
Transport for the rich and famous
normally comes at a cost – and not
just fiscally [although figures for
motorised transport can make those
tear-ducts leak excessively!] but
also environmentally.
An economy class return flight from
London to New York emits around
1.48 tonnes of CO2 per passenger more than double the average person
in Ghana produces in a whole year.
Now when we talk about private jets,
magnify this impact by a factor of
at least 14, according to a report by
Transport & Environment, a European
clean transport campaigning
organisation.
This makes them roughly 50 times
more polluting per passenger than
trains.
A recent article by the New York
Times said “owning or operating
a superyacht is probably the most
harmful thing an individual can do
to the climate.” Take, for instance,
Rising Sun, the 454-foot, 82-room
megaship owned by the DreamWorks
co-founder David Geffen. According
to a 2021 analysis in the journal
Sustainability, the diesel fuel
powering Mr. Geffen’s boating habit
spews an estimated 16,320 tons of
carbon-dioxide-equivalent gases into
the atmosphere annually, almost 800
times what the average American
generates in a year.
Currently there are around 5500
superyachts [boats longer than 100ft]
sailing the 7 seas. Together, they are
responsible for more pollution than
some entire countries.
But, and of course there’s a ‘but’, it
doesn’t have to be like this.
The rich can still have their
playthings and do right by the
environment.
Take the Black Pearl by OceanCo
for example: One of the biggest and
most ecological sailing yachts in the
world, she can cross the Atlantic
ocean without even burning a single
litre of fossil fuel.
Her DynaRig sailing system’s clever
propulsion system harnesses kinetic
energy when the vessel is under sail.
Galleon-like in looks, the Black Pearl
is all modern tech. With a single
push of a button, her 2877 square
metres of sails unfurls in as little as
7 minutes and with being built from
light, modern materials, she can
reach a top speed of 30 knots.
And yes, there’s still a spa pool, hot
tub and seaside cinema on board!
YESTERDAY’S NEWS TOMORROW
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