Is your cruise green? It can be hard to tell
THE small cruise ships of the Hurtigruten fleet, which serve Norway’s picturesque coastal routes, are painted red and black. But on the inside, they are green, according to the company.
A decade ago, the cruise line ditched heavy fuel oil in favour of cleaner-burning marine gas oil. More recently, it stripped all single-use plastics from its fleet.
It added three new hybrid ships that partially use battery power, cutting emissions by 20%. And this year, it announced it would introduce its first zero-emission ship by 2030.
Historically, cruise lines haven’t exactly been model citizens when it comes to environmental protection. So when a cruise ship claims to be green, travellers have every reason to be sceptical.
With consumer interest in green travel on the rise, many cruise lines are making bold environmental claims and hoping to get your business. Do they deserve it?
Most do not, to hear environmental advocacy groups talk about it. The latest cruise ship report card issued by Friends of the Earth gives most major cruise lines failing grades for inadequate sewage treatment, air pollution and lack of transparency.
Marcie Keever, the oceans and vessels
programme director with Friends of the Earth, said cruising remains “one of the dirtiest vacation choices.”
Still, cruise lines are trying to be greener. Among the major cruise lines, MSC Cruises, which received a D+, is among those talking the loudest about sustainability.
It introduced low-emissions exhaust gas cleaning systems last year, which it says reduces sulphur dioxide emissions by 98%. It also fitted its fleet with certified ballast water treatment systems and announced plans to reduce onboard water demand by 3% per year for each ship by monitoring usage, installing water-saving technologies and training crew members.
The riverboat cruise line Uniworld is also one of the most vocal when it comes to the environment.
This year it introduced an environmental impact report, detailing progress against 11 sustainability goals. They include reducing food waste by 50% across all ships by 2025 and building sustainable ships that run on cleaner fuels.
As with other travel industry companies, there’s no universally accepted green certification for cruise lines.
No certification is required or has risen to the level of a universally accepted guarantee of good environmental citizenship.
James Newcombe, CEO of the tour operator French Waterways, says travel advisers do their best to differentiate between truly green businesses and those that are all talk.
There are no recent studies that suggest customers are demanding more environmentally conscious cruises.