The cruise industry is a significant and growing contributor to the
U.S. economy, providing more than $32 billion in benefits annually
and generating more than 330,000 U.S. jobs, but also making the
environmental impacts of its activities an issue to many. Although
cruise ships represent a small fraction of the entire shipping
industry world-wide, public attention to their environmental impact
comes in part from the fact that cruise ships are highly visible
and in part because of the industry's desire to promote a positive
image. Cruise ships carrying several thousand passengers and crew
have been compared to "floating cities", and the volume of wastes
that they produce is comparably large, consisting of sewage;
wastewater from sinks, showers, and galleys (graywater); hazardous
wastes; solid waste; oily bilge water; ballast water; and air
pollution. The waste streams generated by cruise ships are governed
by a number of international protocols (especially MARPOL) and U.S.
domestic laws (including the Clean Water Act and the Act to Prevent
Pollution from Ships), regulations, and standards, but there is no
single law or rule. Some cruise ship waste streams appear to be
well regulated, such as solid wastes (garbage and plastics) and
bilge water. But there is overlap of some areas, and there are gaps
in others. Some, such as graywater and ballast water, are not
regulated (except in the Great Lakes), and concern is increasing
about the impacts of these discharges on public health and the
environment. In other areas, regulations apply, but critics argue
that they are not stringent enough to address the problem -- for
example, with respect to standards for sewage discharges.
Environmental advocates have raised concerns about the adequacy of
existing laws for managing these wastes, and they contend that
enforcement is weak. In 2000, Congress enacted legislation
restricting cruise ship discharges in U.S. navigable waters within
the state of Alaska. California, Alaska, and Maine have enacted
state-specific laws concerning cruise ship pollution, and a few
other states have entered into voluntary agreements with industry
to address management of cruise ship discharges. Meanwhile, the
cruise industry has voluntarily undertaken initiatives to improve
pollution prevention, by adopting waste management guidelines and
procedures and researching new technologies. Concerns about cruise
ship pollution raise issues for Congress in three broad areas:
adequacy of laws and regulations, research needs, and oversight and
enforcement of existing requirements. Legislation to regulate
cruise ship discharges of sewage, graywater, and bilge water
nationally has been introduced in the 110th Congress (S. 2881).
This book describes the several types of waste streams that cruise
ships may discharge and emit. It identifies the complex body of
international and domestic laws that address pollution from cruise
ships. It then describes federal and state legislative activity
concerning cruise ships in Alaskan waters and activities in a few
other states, as well as current industry initiatives to manage
cruise ship pollution.
General
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