Unwanted rusty old barge moored in Queensway Quay Marina, Gibraltar

UPDATE: Just a few days after this story appeared on the EWN website, the barge disappeared from its site and was moved with other commercial vessels on the Detached Mole where it is out of sight. The Queensway Quay Appreciation Society was delighted and has thanked the newspaper for its assistance in promoting the story.

ACCORDING to a press release issued by the Queensway Quay Appreciation Society, a rusty old barge which they have named ‘The Shame of Gibraltar’ is sitting causing pollution in the Queensway Quay Marina.

 It appears that it is owned by Van Oord, the well-respected Netherlands based international company, who are world leading experts in dredging and land reclamation and who were involved in the construction of some of the developments that now overlook the barge.

It is claimed that the Gibraltar Port Authority refuses to accommodate the rusty old barge despite there being more appropriate mooring space available in the harbour, and despite it being previously moored at times to the Detached Mole, so far there appears to have been no offer of assistance from the Environmental Agency.

To add to this, the owners of the private marina have not responded to a request from local residents group, Queensway Quay Appreciation Society, Gibraltar, to discuss the matter.

Residents and property owners in the marina are becoming increasingly concerned that the rusty old barge looks to be increasingly unstable and is listing. There are now fears that the boat may sink and become a permanent feature in this prestigious recreational yachting marina.

Some could say that this is sour grapes from a number of wealthy home owners in the association and that the barge itself, whilst a bit rusty, adds a certain charm to the area, although this is disputed by those who want to see the barge removed. They argue that as it is too long to moor in the normal way, it is moored at an angle. 

This, the association maintains, leaves a large area of almost totally enclosed water between the barge and the quay. This area serves as a permanent trap for floating rubbish, including dead and rotting seagulls and waste oil, further adding to the feeling of neglect and dilapidation.

They hope that their growing campaign against this blight to the area will serve to hasten the permanent removal of ‘The Shame of Gibraltar’ for the betterment of the area, and Gibraltar as a whole.