Red Light (Spells Danger)

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Venice 25th October A light in the "Canale Petroli" in the Venice lagoon is seen on on a stormy weather day HOW TO LICENCE THIS PICTURE: please contact us via e-mail at sales@xianpix.com or call London +44 (0)207 1939846 for prices and terms of copyright. First Use Only ,Editorial Use Only, All repros payable, No Archiving.© MARCO SECCHI (Marco Secchi) While sailing in the Lagoon at the entrance of  "Canale dei Petroli" I saw the two lights for the tankers. The red one caught my attention and reminded me the Billy Ocean song......

Red light spells danger Can't hold out much longer Cos red light means warning Can't hold out I'm burning No, no, no

It is estimated that one third of a large oil tanker's load would be enough to provoke a true ecological disaster in the lagoon and also in the Adriatic coast. The presence of oil tankers is thus an enormous risk for the lagoon of Venice.

NO Cruise Ships....in Venice

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The protest against the Cruise Ships was held today on the Grand Canal and just after the Punta della Salute....for pure coincidence...a large...no a very LARGE Cruise Ship...the Cunard Queen Victoria was crossing St Mark's Basin.... Protesters on small boats display banners against Cruise Ships crossing Venice get as close as they can to the Queen Victoria Cruise Ship in St Mark's Basin (Marco Secchi/XianPix) (Marco Secchi /XianPix)

Few more pictures of today protest organized by Comitato NO Grandi Navi are here. I just realized I took the pictures in Southampton few years ago when the Queen Victoria was named and pictures are here....

As usual was a very well organized and behaved protest!

 

Big Ship You Kill Me!

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I do not think we really need to say why the big ship should not be allowed in Venice...do we?  A minor note...this was not my fav images of the day but the one ABC decided to use! VENICE, ITALY - JANUARY 16: A protester, sailing next to a Coast Guard power boat on the Grand Canal, holds black listed banner reading "Stop the large Ships" on the day of the special meeting discussing the environmental impact of cruises in Venice on January 16, 2012 in Venice, Italy. Protest are mounting in Venice against large cruise ships crossing St Marks's basin after the Costa Concordia tragedy. (Marco Secchi)

Large Cruise Ships in Venice

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UPDATE 12/1/2012A new protest has been called for the 14th January at 3:30 pm details are here but will be from Le Zattere near the waterbus stop!

VENICE, ITALY - DECEMBER 18:  A protester holds  a flare in front of a banner as they protest against large cruise ships in St Mark's basin on December 18, 2011 in Venice, Italy. Venetians and Environmentalists are opposed to cruise ships, which plough through the shallow Venetian lagoon, damaging the fragile buildings and canal banks. (Marco Secchi)

This evening saw a protest in St Mark's Basin against the super Cruises. In the picture a protester holds a flare while on the banner is written "BIG CRUISES YOU KILL ME"

Giorgio Orsoni Mayor of Venice few days ago said cruise ships could be transferred to Porto Marghera, on the mainland, in order to minimise their environmental and aesthetic impact on Venice.

Environmentalists and heritage groups have long pointed out that as cruise ships plough through the shallow Venetian lagoon, their powerful wake and undertow damages the fragile canal banks, wooden piles and mud banks on which the city rests.

There has been a huge increase in the number of cruise ships visiting 'La Serenissima', as Venice is known, from 200 in 2000 to 510 in 2007.

Last year 1.6 million tourists arrived in Venice by cruise ship, a more than fourfold increase since 1997.

Venice's cruise ship terminal was the 10th busiest in Europe but is now the fourth most popular.