Locals on the r/newfoundland Reddit forum were outraged when someone shared a picture of a superyacht docked in St. John's Harbor.
Named the Elysian, this particular superyacht is owned by billionaire John Henry, who owns multiple sports teams, including the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club. As for the hate, he's used to it — he's already caught some flak for flaunting his yacht in upstate New York.
According to SuperYachtFan, the Elysian has a helipad, gym, spa, and six rooms that can accommodate up to 12 guests. All of these amenities add up to a superyacht worth $90 million, costing another $9 million to operate annually. Much of this money is spent on fuel costs.
The amount of resources and the environmental toll it takes to keep superyachts running has sparked backlash toward billionaires online.
One comment on the original post sums up the criticism nicely. "It's irrelevant to me if they work hard or not," the commenter said. "The fact is that this type of display sickens me. So many better things could be done with 90 million."
This anger is not unfounded. The environmental impact of superyachts cannot be understated. Often powered by dirty energy, they release an estimated equivalent of 860 years' worth of pollution for an average person, according to a 2024 Oxfam paper, and 22% of that massive pollution output is generated when the boat isn't in use.
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Despite their major contribution to the planet's warming, billionaires such as John Henry are often not held accountable by government institutions. Oxfam reports that superyachts are exempt from both EU carbon pricing and International Maritime Organization emissions rules.
To combat this, organizations such as Oxfam are calling on world governments to be stricter with billionaires and their polluting habits.
"I'd rather see them spend money on people," another commenter on the Reddit post said. "Fund hospitals, libraries and feed the poor."
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