The internet can be a harsh place for yacht owners, as excessive displays of wealth continue to perturb the general public.
Billionaires such as Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos are among those who take heat for their excessive contributions to dirty energy usage, as these large ships require massive amounts of fuel.
An Instagram video from 2023 shows yachts at a marina crashing into each other in the aftermath of a storm.
Shared by Sailor Crew World (@sailorcrewworld), the video sparked commenters to discuss the extravagant lifestyles of the uber-rich.
"What a mess!!!" one observed.
"They have the money to own it but not move it," another vented.
While the damage done by the storm was clear, with sinking ships as well as debris in the water and covering the dock, the environmental impact of yachts persists even when the vessels are running perfectly fine.
The bigger the ship, the more fuel it requires, thus the more pollution it produces. An Oxfam study found that within a year, "an ultra-rich European on their yachts emits, on average, as much carbon as an ordinary European would in 585 years."
Other studies show the top 1% are disproportionately responsible for global pollution.
And while these vessels — sometimes referred to as megayachts, depending on their size — are large and expensive, as the storm video shows, they are not invincible.
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In 2023, a massive luxury yacht crashed in Hawai'i, damaging a Maui coral reef.
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We should pay for all of it 👍 Luckily, some have noted the exorbitantly rich population's desire for large boats and taken steps to make yachts more environmentally friendly. Silent Yachts, a company out of Austria, has created solar-powered craft to curb the polluting nature of these ships.
As for the wrecked ships in the video, there was a need for some heavy-duty cleanup.
"Rich people problems," one commenter said.
Another added, "No wonder the oceans are full of rubbish."
If the climate issues related to yachts speak to you, try exploring low-impact travel options to do your part in cutting down dirty fuel pollution.
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