Bornholm shops welcome cruise ships despite pollution concerns

Local businesses in Rønne are embracing the arrival of cruise ships like Mein Schiff 7, despite their environmental impact, reports DR.

The 316-metre vessel, carrying up to 3,000 passengers and featuring 12 restaurants, 17 bars, and multiple leisure facilities, docked in Rønne Harbour on Friday. Jan Bidstrup, owner of clothing store Din Tøjmand and chair of Rønne’s trade association, said the visitors are vital for the island’s economy, particularly in winter.

“They bring life to the town, which we don’t have much of in the colder months. And they generate the revenue that keeps my business going year-round,” Bidstrup said, calling cruise guests “extremely important” for Bornholm.

However, the ships’ reliance on oil-powered engines while docked contributes to significant pollution. Steen Solvang Jensen, a senior researcher at Aarhus University’s Department of Environmental Science, has previously found that emissions from such vessels in Danish ports average the equivalent of nearly 4,000 cars for nitrogen oxides and 5,500 cars for fine particles.

Bidstrup acknowledged the problem, stating, “The pollution is really bad, and something must be done. There have to be solutions, like connecting them to shore power so they can use our land-based electricity and pollute less than they do today.”

Yet Rønne Harbour does not currently offer shore power. A request to install the necessary infrastructure was denied due to limited capacity in the subsea cable supplying electricity to Bornholm, according to Per Sørensen, grid director at Trefor El-net.