The Cruise Industry and Pollution
Pollution from cruise ships is a growing problem. Currently, lax state and federal anti-pollution laws allow cruise ships to dump untreated sewage from sinks and showers and inadequately treated sewage from toilets into state waters (with the exception of California and Alaska). Once ships are three miles from shore, they can dump untreated sewage from toilets. This puts our coastal environment at risk from the threats of bacteria, pathogens and heavy metals generated in these waste streams.
Each day, cruise ships generate an astonishing amount of pollution:
- 25,000 gallons of sewage from toilets
- 143,000 gallons of sewage from sinks, galleys and showers
- Seven tons of garbage and solid waste
- 15 gallons of toxic chemicals
- 7,000 gallons of oily bilge water
And the cruise industry is growing:
- More than 200 cruise ships carry millions of passengers to ports around the globe each year.
- From 2000-2003, cruise embarkations increased by 1.83 million, a 23 percent increase over the three-year period.
- In 2003, U.S. ports handled an estimated 7.1 million cruise embarkations, an increase of 9.4 percent from 2002.
Laws and Regulations
A look at the types of waste that cruise ships produce and the applicable U.S. laws and regulations:
Sewage and Wastewater
Under the Clean Water Act, cities and industries are required to obtain a permit to treat and discharge wastes. These permits ensure that sewage treatment systems are effective, and that both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and that the public know how much pollution is actually being discharged. Yet cruise ships are not required to have discharge permits. They can dump sewage into the oceans without monitoring or reporting what they release. As a result, neither the government nor the public know how much pollution is released, and there are no means for citizen enforcement.
Cruise ships are allowed to release treated sewage wherever they sail, except the state waters of California. They are also permitted to release untreated gray water -- wastewater from dishwashers, baths, showers, laundries, sinks and wash basins -- anywhere they sail, except in Alaskan and Californian state waters. Once outside of three miles from the U.S. coastline, cruise ships can also lawfully release untreated sewage, or black water, anywhere (except in the Alexander Archipelago in Alaska, where treated sewage and gray water may be discharged only while cruise ships are under way, traveling at least six knots).
Cruise ships are required to have onboard waste treatment systems, known as marine sanitation devices (MSDs), but the industry is not required to monitor or report MSD discharges to either the government or the public. A study in Alaska showed that sewage from large cruise vessels "treated" by MSDs failed to meet federal standards for treated sewage in 69 out of 70 samples. Cruise ships also are not required to monitor the quality of the waters into which they routinely dump their waste.
Solid Waste
Under Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, or MARPOL 73/78 (implemented by the federal Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act and regulations), cruise ships are barred from dumping plastics anywhere at sea and floatable garbage within 25 miles of shore. They are permitted, however, to dump garbage that has been ground into pieces larger than one inch when they are three miles from shore, and unground garbage when they are at least 12 miles form shore.
Toxics
Toxic chemicals generated by cruise ships are generally waste products from photo developing, dry cleaning, painting and other activities. Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, ships are required to store these wastes onboard while under way, and then, once in port, to transfer them to certified chemical treatment and disposal facilities.
Oil
In the wake of the Exxon Valdez disaster, the Oil Pollution Act amended the Clean Water Act to prevent oil dumping by ships. Any oil coming from a ship within 12 miles of shore must be diluted enough so that it leaves no "visible sheen," which means it must measure less than 15 parts per million (ppm). Once a ship is more than 12 miles from shore, it may release more concentrated oily waste, as long as it measures less than 100 ppm. The law also requires ships to retain oily waste onboard while under way and then send it to an appropriate reception facility on shore. Ships also must record the disposal of oily residues and bilge water.
Air Pollution
Cruise ships and other large marine vessels have diesel engines that are major sources of air pollution. One cruise ship discharges 1/5 tons of smog-forming nitrogen oxides, 1.3 tons of sulfur oxides (the equivalent of a large cement plant), 253 pounds of carbon dioxide, 100 pounds of volatile organic compounds, and 75 pounds of particulate matter. This is equivalent to the output of 12,000 automobiles. It is especially hazardous to persons with asthma and respiratory illnesses. However, emissions from cruise ship diesel engines are unregulated, except in Alaska. California enacted a law in September, 2004 that prohibits incineration by cruise ships within three miles of shore.
