Overbooking

By Jason Moore SUMMER has arrived and soon the local nautical industry will be complaining of a shortage of moorings. This state of affairs happens every year and there will be calls for the construction of more yacht clubs, a move which will be bitterly opposed by environmentalists. I would like to make a suggestion. I think you can safely say that there are literally thousands of pleasure boats of all shapes and sizes that never leave their mooring. If all the yachts which are moored in the Port of Palma elected to go out at the same time, apart from making the Guinness Book of Records, it would be complete gridlock. Only a small percentage of yachts put to sea on a regular basis. My first suggestion would be to build some floating quays, which could be brought out and moor in place whenever they are needed. The Port of Mahon already operates a similar system. My second suggestion is rather more radical. Boat owners, who do not plan to use their craft, could be given the option of storage on-land in return for their mooring. I am sure that a number of boat owners would accept this offer. It would be a way of resolving the mooring crisis and would not create too much political debate. Naturally, the overbooking for moorings only occurs during these peak months; we are talking just three months a year. Looking at Majorca at the moment I think there is far too much building and the construction of yet more yacht clubs would probably cause more harm than good. As I have said many times before in this space, the local authorities using some imagination and by actively encouraging boat owners to get involved, could resolve this situation with relative ease.