Venice is close to losing its battle against enormous cruise ships when it was ordered to permit them back into its delicate lagoon.
A law introduced last November set out to reduce the number of cruise ships of more than 40,000 tons which could enter.
But now a regional tribunal has overturned the law. It decided that alternative routes for the ships to reach the cruise terminal have not yet been agreed on and that the risks posed by the vessels had not been proven.
The cruise industry has dismissed arguments that the vessels damage the foundations of the World Heritage city. They further put down the idea that a disaster could occur, like that of the Costa Concordia, if a liner failed to stay on course.
Gian Luca Galletti, the environment minister, said that while the tribunal’s ruling would be respected, there was an urgent need to find a solution which would prevent giant cruise ships from “continuing to pass along Venice’s ancient canals”.
Dario Franceschini, the culture and tourism minister, said it was “unimaginable that such giants should be allowed to pass right in front of St Mark’s Square. Nobody with an ounce of common sense can understand it.”
The original legislation was also to introduce next year an outright ban on vessels of more than 96,000 tons. These dwarf the city.
One of the largest cruise ships to visit the lagoon city, the MSC Divina, is nearly 140,000 tonnes and more than 1,000ft long with capacity for nearly 5,000 passengers and crew.
The issue is due to be discussed again in June.
