The sight of a massive superyacht with a police escort gave onlookers quite a show recently.

A photo posted in the r/GoldCoast subreddit shows a typical sunny day on Australia's Gold Coast.  

While seeing boats pull up in the harbor is common, seeing a massive superyacht owned by a tech billionaire was a surprise for many. Bringing even more attention to the arrival was the police escort.

One commenter complained: "Police supplying marine escorts for the rich. Meanwhile, they can't turn up to a break and enter in a decent timeframe."

Other commenters theorized about the owner's identity, with ideas ranging from Mark Wahlberg to Russian oligarchs. 

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel topped the list thanks to his billionaire status and because model Miranda Kerr, an Australian native, is his wife. Of course, he's not the only social media CEO potentially making waves abroad since Mark Zuckerberg's $300 million yacht purchase.

The original poster was impressed enough to write, "Never seen anything of this size before, was really cool." One commenter replied: "Some people just have too much money."

While Gold Coast onlookers were surprised, in areas like Palm Beach, Florida, superyachts are a dime a dozen, with some large enough to hold smaller yachts on the bow.

As the uber-rich continue to pay more for superyachts —  such as Amazon's Jeff Bezos, who has one worth $500 million, with a trailing $100 million boat to house the parent vessel's toys — the planet also pays for it.

Global transportation is responsible for over 16.2% of carbon pollution, according to Climate Watch figures shared by Our World in Data, but superyachts take it further. 

Should the ultra-wealthy pay a tax to help offset their environmental impact? Absolutely 💯 Depends how they're taxed 💰 Only corporations should pay those 🏭 No way 🚫 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

According to Oxfam, 23 superyachts owned by billionaires each have an estimated annual polluting carbon footprint of 5,672 tonnes (6,252 tons), an amount that would take 860 years for one person to produce. 

The effect extends to marine animals that have suffered hearing loss because of noise pollution, while habitats such as coral reefs have degraded due to physical damage.

Luckily, anyone can enjoy life on the water or go on cross-country sightseeing trips by supporting more eco-friendly travel options. 

On land, one can travel in style on high-speed electric rail service. Boat lovers can luxuriously sail on Silent-Yachts that use solar power and noiseless cruising.

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