Abandoned boats pile up in Danish harbours as owners disappear

Abandoned boats are accumulating on land and in the water at Danish harbours, with around 2,000 reported over the past five years, DR reports. A survey by the Association of Danish Marinas found that 900 abandoned boats appeared in harbours last year alone.

The association, known as FLID, is calling for a nationwide register of recreational boats. Sweden has such a register, which makes it easier to contact people who leave behind boats they can no longer sell, said FLID chairman Bent Ole Jonsen.

“People sometimes leave boats as scrap in a harbour, or their abandoned boat lies at anchor,” Jonsen said.

Kenneth Borum Kjærgaard, harbourmaster in Lemvig and a FLID board member, said the number of boats in harbours was becoming a problem. He said the number of boats increased during the coronavirus crisis, but owners now tended to forget to look after them.

Sailors also see the effects. Eva Thomsen, chair of a local sailing association in Jegindø, said it was unpleasant to enter a marina containing several wrecks or even sunken boats. She also supports a central register of recreational boats.

Skive Marina currently has two abandoned boats, down from five or six a short time ago. Jan Stilling, chairman of Skive Water Sports Harbour, said the remaining boats were probably not seaworthy and that their owners owed money for their berths.

The boats also occupy berths that could be used by other vessels, which are generally becoming larger. Stilling said the marina needed more wide berths and suggested that two smaller spaces could be combined into one larger space.

Harbours must follow several rules before an abandoned boat can be removed. The boats must be publicly advertised, and the owners must be contacted where possible. If that does not work, the boats can be sold at auction, sometimes for as little as one krone each.

Business Minister Martin Lidegaard said in a written response that he was positive about the possibility of creating a register. He said abandoned boats created environmental, economic and visual problems, and that he would ask the Danish Maritime Authority to examine the issue.

Lidegaard said the goal should be to reduce problems in harbours without creating more paperwork than necessary, while ensuring that the costs were paid by the right people.