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With 70 percent of cruises traveling to biodiversity hot spots, from Galápagos to Molokai, there are concerns about the ships’ impact on fragile environments. As an estimated 14.2 million passengers are expected on board in 2010 (a 49 percent jump since 1998), the cruise industry is working to become more eco-friendly. According to Steve Collins, director of environmental programs for the Cruise Lines International Association, the U.S. Coast Guard routinely monitors ships’ discharges and emissions, but now cruise lines are going further than the law requires. Many lines are switching to gas turbine engines to reduce emissions, and others are adopting dockside electric shore power, which allows ships to plug into an outside source of electricity while in port, reducing pollution from onboard generators. When the technology was first introduced in Seattle, emissions from docked ships were reduced by 30 percent. Some vessels have installed advanced wastewater-treatment systems and are rerouting their itineraries to avoid eco-sensitive areas such as coral reefs.
Still, these efforts are not universal, so it’s up to travelers to do their research. Collins recommends checking out each company’s ecological policies on its Web site or contacting its environmental department. —Wing Sze Tang
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