Vote to ban cruise ships:

Thousands of Venetians have voted in an unofficial referendum – organised by campaigning local activists – to ban large cruise ships from the city’s lagoon, on the grounds that they overcrowd the city with tourists and damage the environment. Each year, some 600 giant cruise ships sail past St Mark’s Square and up the Giudecca Canal to the cruise ship terminal. Campaigners say they not only ruin the beautiful cityscape of La Serenissima – church spires, merchants’ palaces, narrow canals and stone bridges – but that the waves they generate damage canal banks and churn up the muddy floor of the lagoon. In last weekend’s vote, more than 18,000 residents (out of a total of 55,000) voted at 60 polling booths set up by activists; 99% voted in favour of the ban. Defenders of the big ships claim they support thousands of jobs, directly and indirectly, and bring in vital revenue.