APB notifies Trasmed that the night-time noise levels of the Ciudad de Granada ferry in the Port of Maó are above the legal limits.
The shipping company decided to anchor the vessel outside the port this weekend pending further tests
Maó
03/06/2024
The Balearic Islands Port Authority (APB) has advised Trasmed, part of the Grimaldi Group, that the noise emissions generated by the Ciudad de Granada ferry at the Port of Maó exceeded the legal limits for night-time hours, based on the results of the studies carried out last April. However, the measurement results show that the regulations were complied with during the daytime period of the ship's stay in the Port of Maó. The shipping company, has decided to anchor the vessel outside the port overnight this Saturday, while awaiting further tests to be carried out before proposing corrective measures to reduce the disturbance caused by the noise.
On 21 April 2024, the Eurofins Cavendish SLU laboratory carried out a noise emission inspection on the Ciudad de Granada ship at the Cós Nou berths in the Port of Maó. This was done to ensure compliance with the noise emission limit values set out by current regulations. The APB commissioned this assessment, which was carried out as a result of complaints received from several Maó citizens and after becoming aware of the results of a sound level measurement report carried out in January by the Maó Local Police.
According to the report, the noise levels generated by the activity of the vessel in the port of Maó exceeded the limits established in Royal Decree 1367/2007, of 19 October, implementing Law 37/2003, of 17 November, on noise, in terms of acoustic zoning, quality objectives and acoustic emissions. As such, the document confirms that the Ciudad de Granada ship's port activity impacts the façade of residential buildings, and also recommends additional measurements.
Trasmed's response
After being informed of these results, Trasmed told the APB that it will request further measurements of its own before suggesting corrective measures to be adopted or applied so that noise does not exceed legal levels, bearing in mind that on 21 April, the Ciudad de Granada and the Ciudad de Palma, also operated by the same shipping company, were in the Port of Maó. These measurements will be taken on 8 and 9 June.
Trasmed decided to anchor the Ciudad de Granada and spend the night outside the entrance to the Port of Maó on Saturday so as to avoid further non-compliance with noise emission regulations during the night.
Trasmed has also announced that it intends to adapt the Ciudad de Granada, which has been in service in the Balearic Islands for more than twenty years, to the electrical shore connection system that the APB has put out to tender in the Port of Maó next January. This modification will significantly reduce any noise pollution, since the ship will be able to switch off the auxiliary engines it needs to generate energy for internal use.
