- Carnival Corp and Royal Caribbean Cruises do a poor job of limiting the pollution from their ships, according to the environmental-advocacy group Friends of the Earth.
- The group graded 16 cruise lines based on how they treat their sewage, the steps they’ve taken to limit air pollution at ports, whether they follow water-pollution rules in Alaska, and the quality of information they provided about their environmental practices to Friends of the Earth.
- Disney Cruise Line was the only business to earn a grade higher than a C-, and no Carnival or Royal Caribbean examined by Friends of the Earth earned a grade higher than a D+.
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Carnival Corp and Royal Caribbean Cruises are the world’s biggest cruise companies, but they’re also among the worst at limiting the pollution from their ships, according to the environmental-advocacy group Friends of the Earth.
The group graded 16 cruise lines based on how they treat their sewage, the steps they’ve taken to limit air pollution at ports, whether they follow water-pollution rules in Alaska, and the quality of information they provided about their environmental practices to Friends of the Earth.
Disney Cruise Line was the only business to earn a grade higher than a C-, and no cruise line owned by Carnival or Royal Caribbean earned a grade higher than a D+. (Every cruise line owned by Carnival that Friends of the Earth graded automatically received an F since the company admitted in June to violating the terms of its probation from a 2017 conviction for improper waste disposal.)
"We really feel as though the industry has not improved in a way that we think they should be, especially with the continued, significant profits they make annually," Marcie Keever, the oceans and vessels program director at Friends of the Earth, said in an interview with Business Insider.
Here's how the six cruise companies included in Friends of the Earth's list fared. Business Insider assigned each possible letter-grade a point value (an F is worth zero points, while an A+ is worth 12 points) and determined the average score earned by each company's cruise lines.
Tied: 6. Carnival Corp — 0
Carnival Cruise Line: 0
Costa Cruises: 0
Cunard Line: 0
Holland America Line: 0
P&O Cruises: 0
Princess Cruises: 0
Seabourn Cruise Line: 0
Average: 0
"This report is inaccurate and misleading," a Carnival representative said. "Our fleet includes Advanced Air Quality Systems on more than 70 more of our ships and we have shore power capability on just under 50% of our fleet. Plus we have the latest advancements in our treatment plants installed on board (and each of these technologies are included on our new ships - and we have 18 new ships on order). We also are the first cruise company to install LNG to power our ships."
Tied: 6. Mediterranean Shipping Company — 0
MSC Cruises: 0
Average: 0
Tied: 6. Genting Hong Kong — 0
Crystal Cruises: 0
Average: 0
Tied: 3. Royal Caribbean Cruises — 2.33
Celebrity Cruises: 3
Royal Caribbean International: 2
Silversea Cruises: 2
Average: 2.33
Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tied: 3. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings — 2.33
Norwegian Cruise Line: 4
Oceania Cruises: 1
Regent Seven Seas Cruises: 2
Average: 2.33
1. Disney — 10
Disney Cruise Line: 10
Average: 10
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