cruise ship pollution statistics

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Do supersonic flights have a future, openmind books, scientific anniversaries, stephen hawking and the science of black holes, featured author, latest book, are cruise ships becoming less eco-awful.

Love them or loathe them, the allure of a cruise holiday is undeniable. Enthusiasts wax poetic about how cruises offer the perfect blend of relaxation and adventure, a magical passport to exotic ports of call, interspersed with sublime moments gliding across the open ocean on a colossal vessel. To their harshest critics, cruise ships are floating monstrosities, obscene monuments to extravagance and excess, a slap in the face to Mother Nature and a smokestack-shaped middle finger to coastal communities. 

As the cruise industry comes roaring back to life post-pandemic, frustration over cruise ship pollution is escalating . One of the cruise industry’s most vocal critics is Friends of the Earth , which publishes a Cruise Ship Report Card that rates the environmental performance of 18 different cruise lines. In 2022, as in the nine previous Report Cards, the industry received mostly failing grades for sewage treatment, air pollution reduction and water quality compliance.

The price of cheap fuel is dirty air

For decades, most cruise ships have run on heavy fuel oil (HFO), also known as bunker fuel, a cheap and dirty fuel that emits harmful sulphur dioxide (SOx), which is known to cause eye, lung, and respiratory tract damage. When mixed with water, SOx forms corrosive sulphuric acid and leads to acid rain . A 2019 study found that the outdoor air quality on cruise ship decks in open water was comparable to highly polluted cities in China.

In 2020, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) set a cap on the sulphur content of marine fuels , but provided a loophole. Ships can continue to use high-sulphur HFO if they install exhaust gas cleaning systems, known as scrubbers, to reduce emissions. These scrubbers work by spraying alkaline water, usually seawater, into the ship’s exhaust stacks. Scrubbers are designed to reduce sulphur levels, and studies show that they don’t reduce emissions of harmful particulates or soot. 

Despite the new rules, according to a recent report , Europe’s 218 cruise ships “emitted more SOx than one billion cars in 2022, or 4.4 times more than all the continent’s cars,” leaving Europe’s port cities “ choking on toxic air pollution from cruise ships. ” In Barcelona, Europe’s most polluted port, “cruise ships emitted almost three times more SOx than all the cars in the city.” 

Most cruise ships run their engines around the clock when at port, generating electricity to power their onboard systems and serve their guests. Only 35% of cruise ships operating today are able to “plug in” to shore-side power grids when docked, and most of the world’s ports are not yet electrified. The EU has mandated that by 2030, European ports must install enough shore-side power connections to meet the electricity needs of docked cruise ships and ferries, and ships will be required to plug in. Spanish ports such as Valencia and Barcelona are currently building electrical substations to comply with the regulation. 

Turning air pollution into water pollution

Scrubber effluent and sludge, which is highly acidic and contaminated with heavy metals and nitrates, is often discharged directly into the ocean, essentially turning air pollution into water pollution. Many ports, such as Vancouver , have now banned the discharge of scrubber effluent while at anchor or berth.

Europe is moving towards stricter rules on scrubber and sewage discharges, which critics say are too lax and often not enforced. For example, current international rules allow ships to discharge treated sewage within three nautical miles of shore and raw sewage beyond 12 nautical miles . Cruise lines have been sanctioned repeatedly for illegally polluting the oceans. Satellite data on global scrubber effluent shows that many of the most affected areas coincide with popular cruise ship routes and ports of call, particularly in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean

What is the industry doing about it?

For their part, cruise lines claim to be going green , with many of the latest mega-cruise ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), a cleaner-burning fossil fuel. While this should eventually help improve the air quality in ports of call and eliminate the need for scrubbers, environmentalists point out that this fuel is actually worse for the climate than HFO because the low-pressure, dual-fuel engines used in cruise ships leak large amounts of unburned methane into the atmosphere, a potent greenhouse gas much worse than carbon dioxide. 

So if the cruise industry was serious about going green, what would it look like? Environmentalists suggest that a good start would be to immediately phase out the use of HFO worldwide and switch to the lowest sulphur fuel available; stop using scrubbers and install efficient particulate filter systems; stop dumping all waste, including sewage, within 24 nautical miles of any coastline; halt investment in LNG and redirect resources to zero-emission strategies, including sustainable fuels such as green hydrogen ; and commit to using 100% shore-side power by 2025 and pay for the cost of building electrical substations in ports of call with limited resources. 

Many holidaymakers overlook the cruise industry’s poor environmental record or the high carbon footprint of a cruise holiday , focusing instead on the price being low enough that they can afford to go. But in order to deliver that affordable price, cruise lines have for decades externalised environmental costs, choosing dirty fuel over clean air, or dumping at sea over responsible waste management on land. This has been a winning strategy for the bottom line, but a losing strategy for human and planetary health.

Neil Larsen

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Cruise industry faces choppy seas as it tries to clean up its act on climate

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• The cruise industry is the fastest growing in tourism and is expected to exceed pre-COVID record highs in passenger numbers and revenues by next year
• The industry promises to make zero-emission vessels and fuels widespread by 2030, and to achieve a goal of 'net-zero carbon' cruising by 2050
• Environmental groups cite its record on pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and over-tourism, and raise doubts about its ability to reach goals
• Concerns include widespread use of "scrubbers", LNG as transition fuel, and limited capacity for shore-based power in ports

Caroline Palmer is a freelance journalist specialising in business, health, sustainability and the artisan economy. She has worked for the Financial Times, The Guardian and The Observer and is a contributor to Ethical Corporation magazine.

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Cruise ship pollution is causing serious health and environmental problems.

• as nations strive to reduce their CO2 emissions and companies come under pressure to decrease their carbon footprint, the maritime industry is finding itself under growing scrutiny
• Carbon emissions and dangerous particulates emitted by cruise ships are caused by the quantity and quality of the fuel used by these floating citadels
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The cruise industry transported over 26 million customers  last year and was worth upwards of $117 billion in 2017. All market projections show that the industry will continue to grow as operators continue to build new state-of-the-art ships with the latest in leisure opportunities. However, as nations strive to reduce their CO2 emissions and companies come under pressure to decrease their carbon footprint, the maritime industry is finding itself under growing scrutiny . Whilst commercial shipping has always been at the center of environmental concerns, the issues surrounding cruise ships are being increasingly called out in the port cities in which they dock.

↪ Read Also:   Renewable Energy Could Save $160 Trillion In Climate Change Costs by 2050

A cruise ship sails past the International Commerce Centre (ICC) in Hong Kong under polluting ... [+] conditions in 2013.

Leisure & Pollution

Cruise ships have often been described as ‘floating cities’, and as environmental groups have pointed out that they are just as if not more polluting. A passenger’s carbon footprint triples in size when taking a cruise and the emissions produced can contribute to serious health issues. On top of the pollution caused by their exhaust fumes, cruise ships have been caught discarding trash, fuel, and sewage directly into the ocean .

Last year, the German watchdog Nabu surveyed 77 cruise ships and found that all but one used toxic heavy fuel oil that the group described as “dirtiest of all fuels”. This came a year after  the same watchdog blew the whistle on German cruise operators for failing to adhere to their own air quality safety standards. The data collected reveals that standing on the deck of a cruise ship is similar to being in one of the world’s most polluted cities, with health experts warning of the issues surrounding poor air quality.

↪ Read Also:   After Pollution Crisis, Puerto Rico To Eliminate All Coal Power Next Year

The Blue Star Ferry Boat in Piraeus Port, Greece.

In France, 10% of air pollution in the port city of Marseilles can be directly contributed to the shipping industry. Locals lament the increase in pollution and health issues with more luxury cruise liners docking in the harbor, and now environmental groups and the regional government are implementing emissions tests and issuing fines to the offending cruise lines. It is estimated that over 50,000 Europeans die prematurely every year as a result of shipping-based pollution.

Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, local environmental groups have demonstrated that a single cruise ship can emit as much pollution as 700 trucks and as much particulate matter as a million cars. It has been estimated that between 40,000 and 100,000 Britons die prematurely every year as a result of emissions from the shipping and cruise industries, with major port-cities such as Southampton, Grimsby and Liverpool particularly affected. In recent years there have been several moves towards reducing the amount of pollution being emitted by ships, however, half the UK seashore lacks the legal protection of maritime pollution laws.

↪ Read Also:   16-Year-Old Activist Demands EU Parliament Act On Climate Change As Quickly As Notre-Dame

Cruise ship 'Independence of the Seas' at the cruise terminal on Wilhelmina Pier, Netherlands, ... [+] sending black smoke into the atmosphere.

Solutions Versus Reality

Carbon emissions and dangerous particulates emitted by cruise ships are caused by the quantity and quality of the fuel used by these floating citadels . The biggest issues with cruise emissions are the levels of nitrogen oxide, which has been linked to acid rain, higher rates of cancer and other forms of respiratory diseases. As such, cruise operators have been urged to switch to cleaner fuel alternatives with a lower sulfur content by 2020, but few have heeded these calls.

Safer fuel, such as liquefied natural gas, is more expensive and operators have favored using scrubbers, which have been called “emission cheat” systems. These scrubbers wash cheap fuel in order to meet environmental standards, but then discharge the pollutants collected directly into the ocean, as independent shipping analyst Ned Molloy explains : “This is sulfurous waste going into the sea. It would be illegal to just dump this anywhere on land anywhere in the EU, except in specialist facilities.”

The dumping of sewage and other such pollutants into the ocean has only aggravated environmental groups and governments charged with cleaning it up, leading the decisions made by some in the cruise industry’s to release more pollutants to be met with widespread condemnation. There exists a range of new technologies aimed at reducing the waste produced by cruise liners, such as onboard incineration plants, recycling programs, as well as cheaper, less polluting fuel options such as LNG. However, without  homogenized  standards and strictly enforced  international rules, the cruise and shipping industry is likely to continue side-stepping many of the possible solutions.

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How the cruise industry is pivoting to sustainability

Cruise ships are notoriously bad for the environment, but this might be changing

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The cruise industry is back and booming. By the end of 2023, an estimated 31.5 million passengers will travel on a cruise ship, according to Statista , and that figure exceeds even pre-pandemic numbers. The sector is expected to keep growing exponentially, with Statista estimating nearly 40 million annual cruisers by 2027.

With this uptick, though, comes renewed questions about the cruise industry's negative effect on the environment. Cruise ships are "an environmental disaster," Popular Science reported, with the behemoth ships "having a massive effect on the climate." One study from the University of Exeter showed that the average cruise ship produces the same amount of carbon emissions as 12,000 cars.

While other transportation sectors, like air travel , are working to become more eco-friendly, cruise ships have long been the bane of environmentalists. Groups like Friends of the Earth claim that "everything that cruise ships come in contact with are likely to be harmed along their journey." However, the industry has begun working on alternatives to their fuel-guzzling vessels, and is exploring ways to make voyages by ship both enjoyable and green.

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How bad are cruise ships for the environment?

Traditional diesel-powered cruise ships pump out massive quantities of toxic emissions, experts say. While the entire shipping industry emits "2.9% of global carbon dioxide emissions," cruise ships "produce more carbon dioxide annually on average than any other kind of ship due to their air conditioning, heated pools and other hotel amenities," The Associated Press reported, citing a study from the European Federation for Transport and Environment.

Then there are the passengers themselves. A person's carbon footprint " triples in size when taking a cruise," Forbes said, and "the emissions produced can contribute to serious health issues." The scale of cruise ships causes a tremendous amount of garbage to accumulate onboard, and "cruise ships have been caught discarding trash, fuel, and sewage directly into the ocean," Forbes added.

Many resort towns that welcome cruise ships have been directly affected by pollution from the vessels, and there has been a purported rise in medical problems in some of these areas. In the French city of Marseille, for instance, shipping pollution "is estimated to account for up to 10% of the city's air pollution problem," The Guardian reported. One man who lives above the ship-docking area in Marseille has "noticed that the cancer cases here began emerging in the years after the cruise ship boom, as the ships got bigger and more arrived," he told The Guardian.

How are cruise lines reacting?

Many companies within the industry are attempting to pivot to sustainability, and a variety of greener options have been proposed. Nearly every cruise line "is investing in green initiatives, from looking at carbon footprint to refining emissions," Colleen McDaniel, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic, told CNN .

One of the key aspects of the shift is an attempted move toward alternative fuel sources. Industry trade group Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) has committed to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Two main alternates are battery and hydrogen-powered ships. Despite the well-publicized danger of hydrogen vehicles, "more than 15% of cruise ships debuting in the next five years" will be equipped with hydrogen fuel cells or battery incorporations, CLIA said, with Stanford University professor Marc Jacobsen telling CNN they are "far cleaner solutions" for ships.

Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten has said it will no longer build fossil fuel-based ships, and is attempting to craft the world's first zero-emission liner. The ship will operate on batteries that "would allow it to run for well over 300 miles before recharging," Time reported. To maximize the ship's range before charging, Hurtigruten "is exploring using underwater maneuvering jets that can retract into the hull to cut drag," and will potentially be "adding sails and solar panels to harness extra power." The company told Time will have a final design for the ship by 2025, with plans to have it water-ready by 2030.

Other initiatives include onboard changes, and "most lines have reduced or eliminated single-use plastics aboard," Travel + Leisure noted. "Waste heat recovery systems are allowing ships like those in the Disney Cruise Line fleet to reduce water usage," the outlet added, and "many cruise lines are also making investments in big-picture sustainability efforts."

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 Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other Hollywood news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.  

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63 cruise ships owned by Carnival Corporation released more toxic sulfur gasses than all the cars in Europe, study says

• 63 cruise ships owned by Carnival Corp. emitted more sulfur oxides than all the cars in Europe in 2022.
• That's according to a recent study from The European Federation for Transport and Environment.
• The cruise industry is investing in alternative energy sources such as LNG fuel and shore power.

On a cruise ship, indulgence knows no bounds. But the industry's tendencies of overconsumption extend beyond all-you-can-eat buffets and unlimited drink packages — and come at an environmental cost.

A June study from sustainable transport campaigner The European Federation for Transport and Environment found that 63 cruise ships owned by parent company Carnival Corporation emitted 43% more sulfur oxides, a group of harmful air pollutants, than all the 291 million cars in Europe in 2022. 

The statistic, while jarring, is a significant decrease from a few years ago, when the organization found ships owned by Carnival Corporation that visited European ports in 2017 emitted 10 times more sulfur oxides than all of Europe's cars. 

The drop is largely thanks to a 2020 rule from the International Maritime Organization that lowered the sulfur content limit of ship fuel from 3.5% to 0.5%. 

Though the IMO rule slashes the sulfur emissions of individual ships, it has done nothing to limit the increasing number of cruise ships in recent years. Compared to 2019, cruise ships are also spending more time at European ports and consuming more fuel, per the report. As a result, cruise ships overall emitted 9% more sulfur oxides in 2022 than in 2017, according to Transport & Environment. 

Cruise ship emissions harm human health and the climate

Sulfur oxides released into the atmosphere can have adverse effects on human health and air quality, from exacerbating respiratory illnesses such as asthma to contributing to the formation of acid rain. A 2016 study estimated that the IMO's sulfur regulations would prevent 570,000 premature deaths worldwide from 2020 to 2025. 

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But there's a catch. Sulfur particles in the atmosphere reflect the sun's radiation back into space, causing a cooling effect . For decades, humans' emissions of sulfur and other aerosols have canceled out some of the warming from greenhouse gasses like carbon dioxide.  

As aerosol emissions fall due to new regulations, like the IMO's shipping fuel rule, that could speed up global temperature rise in the short term, as Dr. Robert Rohde, lead scientist at Berkeley Earth, explained in a Twitter thread on Wednesday. 

—Dr. Robert Rohde (@RARohde) July 5, 2023

Cruise ships directly contribute to global warming too, though. Carbon dioxide emissions from cruise ships visiting European ports in 2022 were the equivalent of emissions from 50,000 flights between Paris and New-York, according to the study — nearly a 17% increase from 2019. 

The cruise industry has a long history of environmental violations. In 2017, Carnival-owned cruise line Princess was fined a record-breaking $40 million after pleading guilty to deliberately dumping oil-contaminated waste into the ocean (and then intentionally covering it up) — plus an additional $20 million fine for violating the terms of its probation. 

Today, as more travelers factor environmental impact into their vacation plans, the industry has begun to invest in other energy sources such as liquefied natural gas and shore power, which allows ships to turn off their diesel engines and run on electricity while docked at port. LNG use would reduce health-harming air pollution, according to the new report, but cruise ships that use it will likely leak the potent greenhouse gas methane.

A spokesperson for Carnival told Insider that the company is the only major cruise corporation with fewer greenhouse gas emissions today than in 2011, despite a forecasted capacity increase of 30%.

Carnival aims to reduce its carbon intensity by 40% by 2030 (compared to 2008 levels) and achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2050 , the spokesperson said, adding that approximately 60% of the company's global fleet is equipped with technology to plug into shore-side power. 

"Since 2019 alone, we have reduced fuel consumption and carbon intensity by 15% per cabin through a combination of efforts – from transforming to a more efficient fleet and making large investments in eco-friendly technologies and programs to optimizing our itineraries and collaborating with ports and destinations on shore power projects," the spokesperson said.

They added: "Addressing climate change requires energy sources and technologies that don't yet exist for any industry, and the maritime sector is no exception. We're committed to pioneering key sustainability initiatives in the industry and have joined forces to share information, research and best practices with companies, universities, research bodies, nongovernmental organizations, and others."

Do you work on a cruise ship or live in a port city? Got a story to share? Email this reporter at [email protected]

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Europe’s port cities ‘choking on toxic air’ from cruise ships

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Cruise ships pumped four times more harmful sulphuric gases into the atmosphere in Europe than passenger vehicles did last year, according to new research showing air quality is deteriorating despite emissions limits and industry pledges to go green.

A total of 509 tonnes of sulphur oxides were emitted by the 218 cruise vessels in operation across Europe last year, up from 465 tonnes of emissions linked to the industry in 2019, the last year of normal activity before the pandemic, according to a report by climate lobby group Transport & Environment.

A 0.5 per cent cap on sulphur content in marine fuels introduced in 2020 by the International Maritime Organization has helped to cut sulphur emissions per tonne of fuel consumed. But dozens of extra cruise ships have been added to the main operators’ fleets since 2019, which has increased total emissions. This is despite passenger volumes in Europe not yet rebounding to pre-pandemic levels.

Sulphur oxides have been proven to cause acid rain and can aggravate respiratory conditions such as asthma and emphysema. Barcelona ranks as the worst-affected port city in Europe for sulphur emissions, with a total of 805 port calls by cruise ships leading to 18 tonnes of sulphur oxides being released into the atmosphere last year.

The research also showed that since 2019 emissions of nitrous oxides and PM2.5 particulate matter, which are both linked to respiratory diseases and lung cancer, had increased by 18 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.

Constance Dijkstra, shipping campaigner at Transport & Environment, said the research showed that major European port cities were “again choking on toxic air pollution from cruise ships”. She also warned that the focus on improving air pollution was “dangerously slipping toward solutions that are good for the air but are disastrous for biodiversity and climate change”.

Shipping leaves trails of nitrogen dioxide pollution across the Mediterranean Sea

Video description.

Animation of nitrogen dioxide pollution across the Mediterranean Sea from May 20 to June 9

Although cruise ships account for a fraction of the emissions linked to the wider global shipping industry, the sector has come under fire from regulators, politicians and activists who are pushing for it to clean up its environmental record.

A host of European port cities, including Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, Dubrovnik and Santorini, have placed restrictions on the industry in recent years. Most notably, Venice banned cruise ships weighing more than 25,000 tonnes from its lagoon to protect its Unesco world heritage site status in 2021. Emissions of sulphur oxides fell by 80 per cent in Venice as a result, according to the research.

In Barcelona, the outgoing leftwing mayor Ada Colau has led a crusade against cruise ships and urged the Catalan regional government to restrict the number allowed in its port. All the contenders to replace her — who are haggling over potential governing coalitions after an election last month — agree that cruise tourism must be reformed to do the city less harm.

Xavier Trias, a pro-business politician who has said “we need to grow in quality not quantity”, is most likely to become the new mayor. He has taken aim at a particular bugbear: transit cruise ships that stop for just a few hours in the middle of their journeys, just enough time for passengers to flock to sites such as the Sagrada Família cathedral and back again. “They bring nothing,” he said.

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Marie-Caroline Laurent, director-general of cruise trade group CLIA, said the industry was “strongly committed to improving its sustainability”. She said companies were adhering to emissions controls and investing in shoreside charging technology, which removes the need for ships to burn fuel while in port.

Carnival, the world’s biggest cruise operator, had the highest sulphur emissions of any operator, with its fleet of 63 ships emitting 43 per cent more sulphur oxides than all of Europe’s passenger vehicles.

The Florida-headquartered company was fined $20mn in 2019 by US prosecutors over environmental violations. It said it was the only major cruise company to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions since 2011 despite increasing its fleet capacity by 30 per cent.  

“While we’re incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made so far, we understand there is still more work to be done,” it added.

But Bryan Comer, head of the International Council on Clean Transportation’s marine programme, said the industry’s efforts to improve its environmental record were “abysmal”. “It seems like every step they have taken to convince the public and shareholders that they are taking sustainability seriously has actually made matters worse,” he added.

The IMO’s sulphur cap led to an increase in the use of so-called scrubbers, which remove sulphur from the ship’s exhaust by collecting the air pollution and disposing of it at sea — to the detriment of marine life.

Scrubbers were also behind a significant jump in particulate matter emissions from cruise ships, according to Transport & Environment, which has called for a ban on the cleaning system in certain ports to be extended to all European waters.

Campaigner Dijkstra criticised the cruise sector’s strategy of using liquefied natural gas instead of heavy oil fuel to reduce air pollution, as engines fuelled by LNG leak unburned methane — a greenhouse gas that has a warming impact 80 times greater than carbon dioxide. Around two-fifths of cruise companies’ order books are LNG-powered vessels.

Instead, the sector should focus on the development of new fuel sources such as hydrogen, said Comer of the ICCT. “The cruise industry is one where you actually could invest in these new technologies,” he added. “They should be protecting the people at the ports of call, they shouldn’t be charging into a city and harming people with no consequences.”

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Cruise ships are known for limbo, shrimp cocktails, and luxury accommodations.

But from the environment’s perspective, they’re known for staggering pollution.

This week, a German environmental group called Nabu released a ranking of the Europe’s cruise ships based on their eco-friendliness.

The report was not flattering.

“Pollution from the cruise ship industry is still massive, despite claims newer vessels are clean and green,” the report read. “No company comes recommended in NABU’s 2017 cruise ship rankings, which show just how little progress companies have made towards cutting pollution.”

Read More: Princess Cruises Fined $40M for Polluting Oceans Since 2005

Nabu claims that all of the vessels are powered by heavy fuel oil, a sludgy tar-like fuel that produces noxious fumes when burned that can harm not only passengers of the cruise, but all those in the vicinity of the ship, while greatly accelerating climate change.  

Estimates from Nabu put the average fuel usage of each of these ships at 150 tons of fuel a day, which releases as much particulate matter into the air as about 1 million automobiles each day.

To make matters worse, many of the companies operating the vessels have failed to install soot filters that would at least marginally improve the environmental impact of their massive fuel combustion.

Filters would help to capture some of the fine particulates that are released when the diesel engines burn fuel, thereby preventing them from escaping into the atmosphere. However, of the 23 ships that the industry claimed would be equipped with this technology, not a single one of them is operational .

Read More: The perils of cruise ships as told by Titanic

The EU based non-profit Transport and Environment, which advocates for cleaner means of transportation in Europe, reports that pollution from the shipping industry causes about 50,000 premature deaths and costs over €58 billion per year .

Cruise ships also devastate oceans when they dump raw sewage from their passengers. A 2014 study by the non-governmental environmental agency Friends of the Earth estimated that the entire industry dumps over 1 billion gallons of sewage yearly.

Devastating statistics like these have caused some cities and local governments to take action to protecting their residents from the harmful effects of cruise ship pollution.

In 2016, the Australian government passed a measure that would force cruise ships at berth to reduce their emissions when in the famous Sydney Harbour .

Similarly, Londoners fought the expansion of a cruise ship port because they feared it would increase pollution from the dedicated docking station.

Powerful cities like London and Sydney may have some bargaining power that allows them to negotiate with massive cruise liner companies.

In less affluent countries that are popular as cruise ship destinations, however, residents will likely suffer more when cruise ships that failed to improve their pollution levels dock in cities reliant on tourism dollars.

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Report: Pollution from the Cruise Ship Industry is Still Massive

Sept. 6, 2017

A cruise ship's emissions are the same as 1 million cars: report

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Were there really no cruise ships that you looked at that you could recommend?

Unfortunately not. We found out that pollution from the cruise ship industry is still massive, even despite that they claim newer vessels are clean and green. We made measurements at quite a few cruise lines, and it proves that nearly all of them, their attitude to the environment is still poor.

Why are they so bad for the environment?

All of them run on the dirtiest fuel you can imagine. It's heavy fuel oil, it's quite toxic. It's a residual of the petrol industry, and it contains a lot of dirty stuff.

The cruise companies know what they are doing, and they know about the problems. But still, they order new ships and don't install emission abatement systems. - Dietmar Oeliger

And on top of that, nearly all of the cruise ships don't have a catalyst or a particulate filter, [like] trucks and cars. That, altogether, sums up to really poor environmental situations.

The report says that a mid-sized cruise ship can use as much as 150 tonnes of fuel each day, which emits as much particulate as one million cars. Is that right?

That's correct. And the reason for this is that their engines run 24/7. Even if they're in the ports, they have to keep running their engines, because it's not only a transport mode, it's a hotel facility. They have a spa on board, restaurants ... and that needs a lot of energy — more or less the same energy a mid-sized city needs.

• AS IT HAPPENS:  Oil billionaire funds ship to remove plastic from ocean

What does it mean for those who are actually cruising around on the boats themselves?

Unfortunately, we were not allowed as an organization to have measurements on board. Therefore, we helped two major TV stations from Germany and one from France to go undercover on board and take measurements with our help. It showed that the amount of emissions that passengers breathe on board is more than twenty times higher than on a main road with a lot of pollution. 

You write in the report that the cruise ship companies "show contempt for their customers." What do you mean by that?

The cruise companies know what they are doing. And they know about the problems that result from their emissions.

This is a competitive industry, they're all cutting costs where they can. So is it really the companies themselves that should be making these changes, or should this be legislated?

Of course, legislation would be the most effective way. But legislation is made by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which is located in London. It's an organization where countries like Liberia, Panama or Greece have a strong position.

And that is because most of the ships are flagged in these states. These countries are very often not interested in environmental regulation and strong enforcement. And that's why we say we can't wait for IMO. We have to be much faster. 

Would you recommend to people not to take cruises?

Well, I wouldn't go on a cruise ship for many reasons. I would not say that people shouldn't go. If it's a once-in-a-lifetime dream for them, if they saved a lot of money to do it, that's fine for me. But if you have the choice to take this or that ship, then take one that is doing quite well in terms of environmental regulation.

More from this episode

• As It Happens Duty calls: Radio reporter, 19, broadcasts live from Anguilla at the height of Hurricane Irma
• As It Happens Father of drum technician killed in Radiohead stage collapse says it's 'appalling' charges were stayed
• September 6, 2017 episode transcript
• FULL EPISODE: As It Happens: Wednesday Edition

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Cruise ships in Europe pumped out more harmful gases than 1 billion cars last year, report shows

Warning that cities are ‘choking on toxic air pollution’ despite industry moves towards lower-emission cruising, article bookmarked.

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Cruise ships were responsible for more than four times the sulphuric emissions into Europe’s atmosphere than all of the continent’s car last year, according to a new report.

This comes despite repeated pledges by the industry to move towards a greener model of operating.

Research from Transport & Environment , who describe themselves as a “clean transport campaign group”, shows 509 tonnes of sulphur oxides were emitted by the 218 cruise vessels sailing in Europe last year. This is up from pre-pandemic levels of 465 tonnes.

Although a cap on sulphur in marine fuels, introduced by the UN in 2020, has cut emissions per tonnes of fuel consumed, the addition of new ships to existing fleets means that overall emissions have increased – although passenger levels are not yet at pre-pandemic in Europe.

Barcelona was Europe’s most polluted port last year followed by Civitavecchia, a coastal port northwest of Rome and the Athenian port of Piraeus.

In better news, Venice – the most cruise-polluted port in 2019 – dropped to 41 st in the list last year following a ban on large cruise ships entering the port that was introduced in 2021, leading to an 80 per cent fall in sulphur oxide emissions.

In the UK, Southampton ranked as Europe’s seventh most-polluted port in terms of cruise ship air pollution, with just 45 ships responsible for almost 10 times more harmful pollutants than all of the city’s 93,000 cars.

Constance Dijkstra, shipping campaigner at Transport & Environment, said: “The pandemic provided some respite for port cities, but this is now well and truly over. Cruising is back and tourist hotspots like Barcelona and Athens are again choking on toxic air pollution from cruise ships.

“Venice has shown that tackling cruise ship pollution is possible, but bans aren’t the only way. Ports can significantly reduce pollution levels by forcing ships to plug into electricity at the port instead of running their engines, and by supporting the adoption of zero-emission fuels.”

Jon Hood, Transport & Environment’s UK sustainable shipping manager, said: “With the government currently revising its flagship green shipping plan we have the perfect opportunity to finally get serious about addressing shipping pollution.

“That means switching away from filthy fossil fuels and onto clean, zero emission fuels like green hydrogen, and setting binding targets for UK ports to support zero-emission technologies.”

The predominant sulphur oxide found in the lower atmosphere is sulphur dioxide, which is a corrosive, acidic gas. According to the UK government , direct exposure to SO2 is associated with asthma and chronic bronchitis and can lead to irritation and constriction of the airways, and can also form acid rain.

Along with Venice, which has long been at the centre of the anti-cruise movement , other European port cities have also placed restrictions on larger vessels, including Santorini, Palma de Mallorca and Dubrovnik. The mayor of Barcelona has previously called on the regional government to curb the number of ships allowed in the city’s port.

Andy Harmer, managing director Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) UK & Ireland, told The Independent that the cruise industry is “strongly committed to continually improving its sustainability efforts, and cruise lines are making significant investments to develop new environmental technologies, sustainable marine fuels and to equip cruise ships to connect to shoreside electricity, removing emissions while at berth.”

“The global cruise fleet, which totals around 300 ships, is one of the most technologically advanced and energy efficient in history. The ships launching this year are indicative of the advancements cruise is making in moving away from a single-fuel industry towards multiple-fuel capabilities.  As part of this transformation, cruise lines are pursuing a variety of new and more sustainable alternative energy sources, including preparing their ships for electric batteries, advanced biofuels, hydrogen fuel cells, and synthetic fuels.

“Today, already more than 80 ships in the CLIA-member cruise line fleet, representing 40 per cent of global capacity, are equipped with onshore power connections and another 83 ships are planned for retrofits. It is anticipated that around 85 per cent of cruise ships coming online between now and 2028 will be equipped with the ability to connect to shoreside electricity.”

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Put your cruise on silent mode, please: Why ships need to curb noise pollution

When Carnival Corp. ships sail into Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve , a protected area teeming with wildlife and striking landscapes, they go into quiet mode.

The vessels don't make any announcements on outside weather decks, and they also slow down from between 14 and 18 knots – between roughly 16 and 21 mph – to often less than 10 knots.

That way, passengers can see animals like seals lounging on bergy bits, while the ship minimizes disruptions to the marine environment.

“Most often, the ship can transit in a place like Tracy Arm or Endicott Arm or Glacier Bay, and typically, we don't see any of the seals move at all,” said Patrick McGuire, vice president of environmental operations and policy for the company’s Holland America Group, which is comprised of Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn and P&O Cruises Australia. “So, that's certainly our objective is to not have any noisy interference with marine mammals because that's what everyone comes to see.”

Those kinds of measures are among a number of steps cruise lines have taken to reduce noise pollution from their ships, which has become a point of increased focus in recent years for many cruise lines.

How do cruise ships create noise pollution?

Sound is a common sensory modality for animals underwater, according to Leila Hatch, Research Ecologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, specializing in underwater sound monitoring and management.

“As light degrades, sound travels really efficiently over really large distances, and particularly sounds that are ... low tones on the piano or lower frequency,” she said. A wide range of creatures, from invertebrates to whales, use sounds to communicate with one another and pick up other cues, such as when predators or prey are close by.

Can we have eco-friendly cruising? What to know about zero-emission ships

Large commercial ships, meanwhile, are the dominant human-generated contributors to low-frequency noise across ocean basins, which can interfere with animals’ ability to hear signals they need to detect. Oceangoing traffic can also add to coastal noise from smaller regional and local vessels in areas like traffic lanes approaching ports.

A ship’s propulsion system is the main culprit in emitting underwater noise, though other machinery can create a vibration that can transmit noise beneath the surface too.

Are cruise ships the main source of noise pollution?

Passenger cruise ships represent significantly less than 1% of all oceangoing vessels, according to Cruise Lines International Association, the industry’s leading trade group. However, Hatch noted that in popular cruise destinations, those ships may make up a larger portion of ships in the area.

Animals in more remote places may also be at higher risk of complications from noise pollution, but that doesn’t mean those living in urbanized environments are accustomed to it.

“Marine animals that depend on habitats where vessel noise levels are persistently high are documented to show higher stress rates, elevated predation risk and lower foraging success,” Hatch said. “These are chronic conditions that become particularly concerning if animals are already vulnerable or endangered. In areas where vessel noise levels have historically been low but traffic is increasing, such as a warming Arctic, animals have the potential for heightened disturbance as they encounter more commonly what has until now been rare noisy events.”

How are cruise ships reducing noise pollution?

Carnival Corp. and Holland America Group have developed protocols for sensitive areas, McGuire said.

Before operating in Glacier Bay, which already limits cruise ship entry to two per day, they conduct underwater sound profiling for the first vessel in each new class by sailing at different speeds, as part of a concession agreement with the National Park Service.

The process is done under the auspices of the Naval Surface Warfare Center, which sends the results to both Carnival Corp. and the park service, and ships are tested at various speeds.

When ships go at higher speeds of around 18 knots, McGuire said propeller cavitation – when vapor bubbles form and dissolve, inhibiting performance and creating noise – is the predominant audible sound source. At lower speeds, the rotation of diesel generators or motors powering functions like air conditioning shows up more clearly. That information allows the operator to evaluate the noise coming from a ship and adjust plans as needed.

Holland America Group cruise lines have measured ship noise in other ways too.

Seabourn Venture, an expedition ship optimized for sailing in polar regions, marked its first class to have its underwater noise level certified by a classification society when the vessel launched in 2022. The voluntary process provides operators with notations that a ship operates within a given sound range.

“So … because these vessels are designed to operate in sensitive areas, we've taken particular attention to have that noise profile measured as well,” McGuire said. Venture’s underwater sound levels came in under the relevant standard, he added.

MSC Cruises has also received “underwater radiated noise” notations for its MSC Grandiosa, MSC Virtuosa, MSC World Europa, and MSC Euribia ships, according to Linden Coppell, MSC Cruises’ vice president of sustainability & ESG.

Down the coast from Glacier Bay, Holland America Group ships also cooperate with the Enhancing Cetacean Habitat and Observation Program led by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, which includes several voluntary initiatives to reduce underwater noise from large commercial vessels.

In the waters around northern Washington and southern British Columbia, ships turn off their ultrasonic anti-fouling systems, McGuire said, which help prevent unwanted organisms from attaching to a ship’s exterior, Hatch noted that ultrasonic anti-fouling systems have become increasingly prevalent on cruise ships and other kinds of vessels over the last two or three years, and are “causing some concern in the scientific community” as they emit sounds at a frequency that disturbs some toothed whale species.

“The ECHO Program is aware some ships are equipped with ultrasonic anti-fouling systems and has discussed with some operators the benefits of disabling the technology when transiting through southern resident killer whale critical habitat to further reduce underwater noise,” a spokesperson for the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said in an email.

Other initiatives aimed at reaching sustainability goals, such as plugging into shore power in port so ships can turn off their engines, have the added benefit of reducing noise, though they may be limited in scale.

Less than 2% of cruise ports worldwide have on-shore power capabilities, though that number is expected to increase to 3% by 2025, according to Cruise Lines International Association’s 2023 State of the Cruise Industry report. Among its member ships, more than half will be equipped to plug into shore power where available by the end of this year.

Coppell said MSC also works closely with shipyards to identify opportunities to further reduce inefficiencies, which she said are often associated with noise. “(With) every ship, there's going to be potentially incremental improvements,” she said.

Those advances may be increasingly important.

“With a larger human population and the globalization of goods, the projectile for how much sound from vessels is in the world's oceans is sort of ever-growing,” Hatch said.

NOAA works to highlight the circumstances that may pose risks to marine life, Hatch said.

"(Noise) has increasingly well-understood physiological consequences for animals, and if they are already having a hard time making a living in the ocean, then that is a stressor we have to address," she said. "We have to figure out ways to improve the quality of that habitat."

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at [email protected].

• Environment
• Food & Drink

Taking a close look at cruise ship pollution

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — More than 230 cruise ships operate worldwide, often in pristine coastal waters. Many cruise lines offer excursions to private islands where snorkeling to admire the coral reefs and marine life is one of the options.

Yet the deep blue seas the ships navigate are being affected by vessels that travel back and forth on the same routes.

The downside of the fun, food and entertainment is the enormous amount of sewage, food and garbage, wastewater from sinks, showers, laundries and kitchens and other wastes being discharged into the seas.

The wastes from the “floating cities” pose a threat to fragile ecosystems, to sea life, and even to people enjoying a day at the beach, say the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and groups such as Bluewater Network, a coalition of 53 environmental organizations.

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A cruise ship with 3,000 passengers can generate 210,000 gallons of waste and sewage and 1 million gallons of gray water from showers and drains in a typical week, the EPA says. There are also discharges of bilge water which may contain oil, grease and other contaminants.

The nation’s top three cruise ship departure ports are in Florida — Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Cape Canaveral.

Report card for ships

One tool available when selecting a cruise is the Friends of the Earth’s 2012 Cruise Ship Report Card. The report card, the third from the non-profit, ranks 15 major cruise lines and 148 cruise ships for their air and water pollution footprint. The report card allows potential passengers to search by destination, by ship or simply identify the ships with the highest overall grades.

To view the report card, go to foe.org/cruise-report-card .

This year the group handed out its first “A” grade. Disney Cruise Line’s overall grade of “A-minus” puts it in the “most improved” category again this year. All four Disney ships have advanced sewage treatment systems and three are equipped to plug in to shore-based power, which enables them to turn off diesel-burning engines. Disney joins five other lines that managed to improve their grades in the past two years.

FOE spokeswoman Marcie Keever said that while many states have no-discharge zones near shore, that’s not the case at sea. About the only thing international law prohibits is plastic being discarded into the oceans.

“Beyond three nautical miles, there are very, very few rules, especially for sewage and gray water from sinks, showers and kitchens. It can contain many of the same pollutants that sewage does,” Keever said.

Carnival Cruise Lines, with the largest fleet of cruise ships in the world with 24 vessels, and whose parent company, Carnival Corp., also owns six other cruise lines on the report card, improved from an “F” in 2010 to a “D-plus” this year. However, Carnival’s grade improved due to improvements for the one ship it operates in Alaska and its installation of shore-based power on two of its ships, Keever said.

Keever said most of the Carnival ships use a traditional marine sanitation device, and while it meets federal standards developed in the 1970s, is an older technology. New systems known as Advanced Sewage Treatment Systems are more expensive, but have more filters and do more to remove pollutants, Keever said.

Friends of the Earth is asking the EPA to pass strong regulatons on sewage treatment.

“Those systems have not been a priority for these ships because they don’t have to install them,” Keever said. “If they pass the costs of new systems on to the customers, it would be the cost of a can of Coke per passenger.”

Miami-based Carnival referred questions about the report card to the Cruise Lines International Association in Fort Lauderdale.

“Consumers should not choose a cruise vacation relying on Friends of the Earth’s environmental report card, which, like its previous reports cards, lacks basis in fact, science and law. The grades assigned cruise lines and their ships are based upon arbitrary, faulty, and misleading measures,” said David Peikin, Cruise Lines International Association spokesman.

“The global cruise industry employs practices and procedures that are substantially more protective of the environment than are required by regulation. All CLIA member lines must meet or exceed all applicable national and international environmental regulations. We advocate practices that fully protect coastal waters wherever we operate and our members have invested extensively to implement a wide range of innovative environmental solutions that reduce air pollution, treat sewage prior to discharge, and protect air quality,” Peikin said.

Specific environmental stewardship practices, according to CLIA, of member lines include:

— Equipping ships with advanced wastewater treatment systems that produce water cleaner than most wastewater treatment facilities in U.S. cities.

— Adopting numerous energy efficient measures including switching to low energy LED lights, developing smoother hull coatings to consume less fuel, using recycled hot water to heat passenger cabins and special window tinting that keeps passageways cooler and utilizes less air conditioning. Halogen and incandescent light bulbs have been giving way to LED lights, which last 25 times longer, use 80 percent less energy, and generate 50 percent less heat.

— Implementing rigorous recycling programs as many CLIA member lines have comprehensive programs and crew members who are specially trained and responsible for sorting, processing, storing, recycling, and the final disposal of garbage. These programs include paper, glass, plastics, aluminum, scrap metal, fluorescent lamps, batteries, toner cartridges and cooking oil, and even special wastes such as chemicals used in photo processing. CLIA members recycle up to 80,000 tons of garbage each year.

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• Cruise industry in Europe ›

How Cruise Ship Pollution Compares To Cars

Cruise ship pollution.

Cruise ships are becoming increasingly controversial in Europe and residents of the Italian city of Venice have become especially enraged by the visiting behemoths. Last weekend, 5,000 of the city's residents protested against the presence of cruise ships in the busy Giudecca Canal following an accident between the 65,500 ton MSC Opera and a nearby ferry. There is a long list of reasons for the backlash against cruise ships including serious overcrowding and pollution. It's well known that the giant ships cause enormous levels of environmental damage but a new report has now shown just how dirty they really are. The shocking data was published in a report from TransportEnvironment.org last week and it found that 203 cruise ships docking in ports such as Dubrovnik, Marseille and Hamburg emitted substantially more SOx during their stay than all passenger cars in those cities for the whole year. SOx is sulphur oxide and it is one of the main pollutants from ships, along with nitrogen oxide (NOx). The following infographic provides an overview of the European cities suffering the worst environmental impact from the cruise industry in 2017. That year, Barcelona experienced 32,838 kg of SOx emissions from cruise ships while the total amount from all cars in the city only added up to 6,812 kg by comparison. The story is similar nearly all of cruise passengers' favorite haunts with SOx from cruise ships totalling 28,000 kg in Palma in 2017 compared to 2,986 kg for the city's cars. In Venice, where outrage is reaching fever-pitch, SOx emissions totalled 27,520 kg from the ships while cars only totalled 1,362 kg.

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This chart shows SOx emissions from cruise ships and cars in European port cities in 2017 (kg).

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Cruise Ship Secrets You Wish You Never Knew

E ver wonder what goes on behind the scenes of those floating paradises? Cruise ships promise sun, fun, and endless buffets, but there’s more to these ocean giants than meets the eye. From hidden crew areas to secret passenger perks, cruise ships are full of surprises.

But be warned: some of these cruise secrets might make you think twice about your next vacation at sea. Let’s discuss the cruise ship secrets you might wish you never knew!

Every big cruise ship has a morgue. It’s a cold, hidden room where they keep bodies if someone dies during the trip. Sadly, with thousands of people on board, deaths do happen sometimes. The crew is trained to handle these situations quietly to avoid upsetting other passengers.

Cruise staff use secret codes to talk about problems without scaring passengers. For example, “Code Adam” means a child is missing. “Operation Bright Star” is for medical emergencies. These codes help the crew deal with issues quickly and calmly.

The Poop Deck

Despite its funny name, the poop deck isn’t what you think. It’s actually the highest deck at the back of the ship. But speaking of bathrooms, did you know that cruise ship toilets use powerful suction? Be careful what you flush – it could get stuck in the pipes!

Hidden Crew Areas

There’s a whole world below decks that passengers never see. Crew members have their own dining areas, gyms, and even bars. These spaces are much less fancy than the guest areas, but they’re where the staff can relax after long work hours.

Yes, cruise ships have jails. They’re called brigs, and they’re used to hold passengers who break rules or cause trouble. These small, bare rooms are nothing like the cozy cabins upstairs. Thankfully, they’re rarely used.

Onboard Crime Scene Investigation

Big ships have their own CSI-style kits for investigating crimes. They can collect fingerprints and other evidence if needed. While serious crimes are rare, the crew is prepared to handle them until they can reach the police on land.

The Truth About “Fresh” Food

Not all food on a cruise is as fresh as you might think. Many items are frozen or pre-prepared to feed so many people. Fruits and veggies might be days or weeks old by the time they reach your plate. But don’t worry – the kitchens still follow strict safety rules.

Secret Passenger Perks

Some passengers get special treatment without others knowing. Big spenders or frequent cruisers might get free drinks, special dining, or even butler service. These perks are kept quiet to avoid making other guests feel left out.

The “Seawater” Swimming Pools

Most pools on cruise ships don’t actually use seawater. They’re filled with filtered freshwater, which is easier to maintain. The water is also heavily treated with chemicals to keep it clean with so many swimmers.

Cruise Ship Pollution

Despite efforts to be “green,” cruise ships can create a lot of pollution. They burn lots of fuel and create tons of trash and dirty water. Some ships are working on being cleaner, but it’s still a big problem for the oceans.

The Risk of Illness

With so many people in close quarters, germs can spread fast on a cruise. Norovirus , which causes vomiting and diarrhea, is a common problem. That’s why you see hand sanitizer stations everywhere. Always wash your hands to stay healthy!

Cruise Ship “Hosts”

Some cruise lines hire men to dance with single female passengers. These “gentlemen hosts” are usually older guys who get free cruises in exchange for being dance partners and friendly faces for solo travelers.

The Real Cost of “Free” Stuff

Those “free” drinks and activities? They’re not really free. The cost is built into your ticket price or added as hidden fees. Always read the fine print to know what you’re really paying for.

Overboard Incidents

People falling overboard happens more often than you’d think. Modern ships have systems to detect falls, but it can still be hard to rescue someone in rough seas. That’s why it’s so important to be careful on deck, especially at night.

The Crew’s Long Hours

Cruise ship workers often work incredibly long days, sometimes up to 14 hours or more. They might work for months without a day off. While they get to travel, it’s not the relaxing vacation that passengers enjoy.

More On This…

Now you know some of the hidden secrets of cruise ships. While some of these facts might seem scary or gross, millions of people enjoy safe and fun cruises every year.

Cruise lines work hard to keep passengers happy and healthy. So, if you decide to set sail, just keep these secrets in mind and focus on having a great time!

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The post Cruise Ship Secrets You Wish You Never Knew appeared first on Only Earthlings .