CAMPAIGNERS backing proposals to dredge Falmouth harbour say the town missed out on crucial trade because a large cruise ship could not berth this week.
The five-star Marina, operated by Oceania Cruises, was carrying 1,160 passengers, mainly Americans.
She was anchored in Falmouth Bay on Monday morning, but due to the swell none of the passengers could board tenders to go ashore and the visit to Falmouth had to be called off.
Port operations manager Mike Reynolds, of A&P Falmouth, said: "Yet again this demonstrates what a great opportunity Falmouth is losing by not being dredged to allow the larger cruise ships to enter the port to berth.
"The average cruise ship operating in northern Europe has 1,200 passengers, the same number that the Marina carries when full, showing that Falmouth is now not able to receive even average-size ships in its port facilities."
Falmouth's mayor Geoffrey Evans said large cruise ships brought vital trade to the town.
"Cruise ships are an important factor in the summer trade, but dredging isn't just about leisure; it's keeping the port open for the next 100 years and ensuring its viability," he said. "We don't want to damage the environment, but we don't want Falmouth harbour to die."
Andrew Robertson, who has been running the Harbour View restaurant on Arwenack Street for seven years, said cruise ships had a "noticeable effect" on business: "We have to take in more staff to cope with the extra tourists. I don't want to see lasting damage to the harbour but the benefits of dredging are undeniable."
The £20 million dredging scheme is part of a wider masterplan for the port, but the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), which has to give permission for the dredge, has so far blocked it over concerns about its impact on the environment.
Campaigners for and against dredging are awaiting the results of a trial operation.
It will show whether or not a full dredge would have an undue effect on the seabed, particularly on maerl beds, which are unique to England.
Falmouth Friends of the Earth and the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) have criticised the scheme, saying it would damage the harbour's wildlife, particularly living maerl, or the species that make their home within the dead maerl.
The MCS added: "There is also the question of the vast millions of tonnes of dredge spoil that will be dumped outside of the bay – what impact will that have on wildlife? If it's anything like that of the effect of the dredging and dumping in Plymouth, then this is further cause for concern."
