Environmental Compliance in the Cruise Industry
May 31, 2001
Dennis L. Bryant- New York
ABSTRACT
The deep-sea, overnight cruise industry is the fastest growing segment of the
maritime industry with annual growth rates of eight to ten percent. The
environmentally sound and legally compliant operation of its ships is a priority
of cruise ship operators. The changing legal landscape, increasing public
interest, the activities of a number of interested parties, ship operational
requirements, technical innovations, and evolving environmental sensitivity are
some of the specific aspects of the overall cruise ship environmental issue. A
discussion on these various aspects is presented in order to inform the reader
of some of the specific actions and developments to date and to provide a better
understanding of the overall issues.
INTRODUCTION
Regulatory and public interest in the potential impacts of cruise ship
operations on the environment continues to draw significant attention. As a
result of a recent petition by a group of public environmental advocates, the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has undertaken the task of evaluating
cruise ship operations and their potential environmental impacts. This effort is
being undertaken concurrently with similar evaluations by states such as Alaska,
Florida, and California. The cruise industry is working closely with regulatory
agencies and the public to address operational and environmental concerns.
This paper describes the complex legal regime in which the industry currently
must operate and the methods the cruise industry uses to meet these stringent
environmental requirements. Included is a discussion of current engineering and
operational practices applied by the cruise industry to minimize the
environmental impacts of their operations.
The paper concludes with an overview of technical and operational changes
that are anticipated as a result of current and future regulatory efforts and
related developments. A brief industry outlook is also presented.
THE CRUISE INDUSTRY
The U.S.-based, deep-sea, overnight cruise industry served over 6.9 million
passengers in 2000 and operated 123 ships on numerous itineraries through the
Caribbean, Alaska, and other exotic locales. The total economic impact in the
United States alone was calculated to be over $15 billion. To say that the
cruise industry is the fastest growing segment of the overall maritime industry
is an understatement. With a growth rate of between eight and ten percent over
the past several years, as of January 2001, there were fifty-three new cruise
ships on order to be delivered by 2005. At a total investment of over $18.5
billion, these new ships will add over 98,000 berths to the market (Seatrade
Cruise Review 2001). As a specific example of growth, one major cruise
operator will increase its capacity from 18,670 available berths in 1998 to
45,006 berths in 2004 – a whopping 241% expansion (International Cruise and
Ferry Review). This expansion will be even greater if options for additional
ships are exercised. With this explosive growth come great opportunities as well
as great challenges. One such challenge is the environmentally sound and legally
compliant operation of these ships.
THE LEGAL REGIME
Cruise ships operate within a pervasively regulated industry. They are
subject to control and oversight from their flag state (i.e., the nation with
which they are registered), the port states (i.e., the nations at which they
make port calls), and, in the United States, the individual states and
localities that they visit. International standards are developed by the
International Maritime Organization (IMO). Cruise ships are also inspected and
surveyed by classification societies. With respect to environmental issues, the
major international standard applicable to cruise ships is the International
Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, commonly referred to as
MARPOL. This standard addresses such things as operational discharges of oil,
disposal of garbage and plastics, and air emissions. Most flag states and port
states, including the United States, have adopted MARPOL requirements as their
domestic standard, so that compliance with this convention constitutes
compliance with national law. The International Safety Management (ISM) Code
required by Chapter IX of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at
Sea (SOLAS) is also important to environmental protection. This code requires an
extensive Safety Management System (SMS) that addresses safety and environmental
management practices and procedures.
The United States has also adopted a series of national environmental laws
that are applicable to all cruise ships operating in U.S. waters. The drafters
of some of these statutes, such as the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA),
consciously considered maritime issues. Other statutes, though, such as the
Clean Air Act (CAA) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), were
implemented with little or no consideration of maritime application, which was
primarily recognized after the fact. The FWPCA prohibits the discharge of oil
and hazardous substances into waters of the United States. It also addresses the
operation of marine sanitation devices (MSDs). The CAA authorizes the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish air emission standards and
impose civil penalties for emissions in excess of those standards. RCRA
authorizes the EPA to establish regulations relating to the handling and
disposal of hazardous waste. Under this statute, the EPA has developed a complex
and paperwork-intensive program that tracks hazardous waste "from cradle to
grave."
In the federal system of the United States, each state has broad residual
authority or "police power" over most issues, with the exception of
things such as national defense and coinage, and regulation of interstate or
foreign commerce. One area in which the states and local jurisdictions have and
exercise extensive authority is that of environmental protection. Thus,
balancing the states rights against federal interests, each state or community
visited by a cruise ship may adopt standards with respect to defining
permissible discharges, including graywater (from dishwashers, showers, laundry,
bath, galleys, and washbasins), blackwater (sewage and medical and dental sink
drainage), oil, ballast water, and air emissions. Florida, where the majority of
large cruise ships are based, has adopted stringent standards for hazardous
waste management, in accordance with the RCRA. California has initiated programs
affecting cruise ships by addressing such things as ballast water discharges and
air emissions.
PRIOR ENVIRONMENTAL VIOLATIONS
Over the past several years, the cruise industry has experienced several
highly visible environmental violations. They have been cited for discharges of
oily waste, hazardous substances, and plastics, as well as excessive air
emissions. In an effort to improve their stature as good environmental citizens
and reduce the risk of future environmental violations, cruise lines are
adopting compliance programs that establish formal internal regimes for meeting
or exceeding environmental standards, and for training and auditing. They are
also installing new equipment to significantly reduce discharges and emissions.
THE GAO REPORT
The United States General Accounting Office (GAO) published a Report to
Congressional Requesters in February 2000 (GAO 2000). This report, entitled
"Marine Pollution – Progress Made to Reduce Marine Pollution by Cruise
Ships, but Important Issues Remain," was developed in response to a request
by Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI) and Congressman Henry A. Waxman (D-CA) and
addressed the general issue of cruise ship environmental performance and several
specific related issues, for the period of 1993-1998. The report concluded that
federal agencies and the cruise industry have recently taken positive steps to
improve environmental performance and compliance. While the report indicated
that only four percent of the pollution violations by commercial foreign-flagged
ships were attributable to cruise ships, and that many of these instances were a
result of accidents, such as failed hydraulic lines and spilling of "a few
drops of paint," it also recognized that a number of significant
environmental issues still require attention by all parties. These issues
include technical and scientific aspects of environmental protection, as well as
operational, legal, administrative, and policy matters.
THE BLUEWATER NETWORK PETITION
On March 17, 2000, the environmental advocacy group, Bluewater Network, and
53 other organizations sent a petition to the EPA urging various regulatory
actions to further control cruise ship discharges. The petition, and an
accompanying report entitled, "Cruising for Trouble: Stemming the Tide of
Cruise Ship Pollution," (Schmidt 2000) expressed concern over a number of
issues including, the magnitude of the discharge volumes from an increasing
number of larger cruise ships. The petition and report recognized that cruise
ships generate and discharge several waste streams and requested that the EPA
take the following actions:
Assess the volumes and characteristics of cruise ship discharges.
Identify potential water quality, aquatic environment, and human health
impacts.
Examine existing federal regulations governing cruise ship discharges.
Recommend means to control and regulate cruise ship discharges.
Outline monitoring and record-keeping options for pollutants discharged by
cruise ships in U.S. ports.
EPA INITIATIVES
Traditionally, the EPA has paid scant attention to ships. In addition to
exempting discharges from properly operating marine engines from the FWPCA
prohibitions, the agency also exempted discharges of sewage, wastes from
laundries, showers, and galley sinks, and other discharges incidental to the
normal operation of a vessel from requiring permits under the National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). Sewage treatment and discharge, however,
is addressed in the law and in implementing regulations overseen by the United
States Coast Guard. In response to the Bluewater Network petition and other
concerns expressed, the EPA has undertaken a study of environmental issues
associated with cruise ship operations. The agency has commenced a broad
assessment of cruise ship discharges.
To this end, the EPA launched an interagency work group on March 31, 2000 to
develop and implement a plan for responding to the Bluewater Network petition.
This work group developed a draft six-month action plan outlining proposed
actions in response to the petition. These actions included conducting public
hearings to solicit input from interested parties, gathering cruise ship waste
discharge information, drafting a report on cruise ship discharges, and
reviewing existing regulatory requirements to determine which, if any, should be
updated. Public hearings were announced in the Federal Register on August 11,
2000 and were held in the regional locations of Los Angeles, Juneau, and Miami
in September 2000. On August 22, 2000, the EPA published a Cruise Ship White
Paper (EPA 200) containing preliminary information regarding cruise ships and
waste management practices and some preliminary discussion on how the EPA might
respond to the Bluewater Network petition.
FEDERAL LEGISLATION
Congress recently enacted, as part of a consolidated appropriations act, a
bill introduced by Senator Frank Murkowski (R-AK) addressing certain cruise ship
operations in Alaska waters. This stand-alone legislation codifies many of the
operational practices previously agreed upon by all participants in the Alaska
Cruise Ship Initiative, including cruise ship operators. It reinforces and
enhances prior federal measures regarding ship discharges, but limits its
application to large cruise ships in Alaska. It prohibits discharge of untreated
sewage into navigable waters of the United States within Alaska and certain
other U.S. waters in the vicinity of Alaska. It specifies that the discharge of
treated sewage and graywater is permitted only when a cruise ship is proceeding
at not less than six knots, is more than one mile from land, is in compliance
with all applicable discharge standards, and when the discharge is not otherwise
prohibited. The legislation establishes requirements with respect to effluent
quality for sewage and graywater, which the EPA is authorized to change by
regulation. The U.S. Coast Guard is directed to establish a cruise ship
inspection and wastewater sampling regime, examine environmental compliance
records and procedures, and inspect the functionality and proper operation of
equipment installed for abatement and control of discharges. Owners, operators,
and masters of cruise ships are required to immediately report any discharge in
violation of the legislation. Violations may result in the assessment of civil
penalties. Negligent violations may result in misdemeanor prosecutions. Persons
who knowingly violate the restrictions may face felony prosecutions, as may
anyone who knowingly makes a false statement or tampers with any testing or
monitoring device or method required by the legislation. To date, no
implementing regulations have been promulgated, although the cruise industry is
working closely with the Coast Guard and other regulatory agencies to ultimately
comply with the requirements.
U.S. COAST GUARD ACTIONS
As part of their role in participating in interagency work groups and in
fulfilling their mission, the U.S. Coast Guard conducted Operation Cruise Watch
2000 from June to September 2000 to place increased emphasis and focus on cruise
ships for compliance with applicable environmental laws. The Coast Guard
increased the scope of its environmental inspections and oversaw the sampling of
cruise ship discharges for every major cruise ship operating in Alaskan waters.
The cruise industry voluntarily agreed to cooperate in this program and funded
the sample analysis efforts. Coast Guard inspectors dedicated more time during
their periodic inspections reviewing environmental compliance and examining
oil-water separators (OWS) and marine sanitation devices. These increased
efforts in inspection and oversight of pollution prevention equipment and
environmental management practices are continuing.
STATE INITIATIVES AND RELATED ACTIONS
Alaska
In December 1999, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC)
invited the EPA, the Southeast Alaska Conference (representing Southeast Alaska
communities), and the Coast Guard to join with cruise ship industry officials in
discussions to improve cruise ship discharge and pollution prevention practices.
The meeting objectives included the identification of discharges and spill
risks, development of pollution prevention and waste management techniques to
eliminate or reduce pollution impacts, evaluation of the compliance process, and
ways to educate the public on these issues. After this initial meeting, ADEC
established the Alaska Cruise Ship Initiative and formed several work groups to
assess cruise ship discharges, focusing on air quality, oil pollution response,
wastewater and solid waste management, and environmental leadership. After
receiving questions and complaints from environmental groups and Alaskans, the
Coast Guard, as part of the Initiative, examined the need to change the
standards for wastewater discharge. One major impact on this decision stemmed
from the controversy involving cruise ships transiting through "doughnut
holes," which are small, localized areas within the Inside Passage of
Alaska that are more than three miles from any land and technically considered
to be international waters where certain wastes can be legally discharged. These
discharges into the "doughnut holes" would not be permitted if these
waters were classified as territorial waters of the United States. In an effort
to allay this controversy, the non-U.S. flagged cruise ships on Alaskan
itineraries pledged in 1999 to consider all the waters of the Alexander
Archipelago as internal to the U.S., and therefore, off limits to discharges by
cruise ships.
In July 2000, the Alaska Cruise Ship Initiative developed a sampling plan and
laboratory analysis procedures for both graywater and blackwater to determine
the type, quantity, and constituent makeup of cruise ship discharges. The
regulatory agencies, cruise ship industry, environmental groups, and interested
citizens worked cooperatively to develop the sampling plan which required each
cruise ship to have its wastewater discharges sampled twice during the summer.
Since the cruise industry had already committed to discharging only when at
least ten miles from port, the sampling occurred while underway.
Following the release of preliminary results from Alaska's cruise ship
sampling efforts in September 2000, Alaska's Governor Tony Knowles called on
state and federal governments to toughen cruise ship environmental regulations.
Final results from the sampling effort indicate that a majority of the samples
analyzed failed to fully comply with established standards. Many graywater
samples exhibited fecal coliform counts in excess of 1000 per 100 milliliters
(ml) and as many as nine samples of treated blackwater exhibited counts in
excess of 10 million per 100 ml. A complete summary of findings is available in
the Initiative’s November 2000 Wastewater Monitoring Fact Sheet (ADEC 2000).
Florida
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) signed a memorandum
of understanding (MOU) on March 14, 2000 with the fifteen cruise-line members of
the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Ship Association (FCCA). The MOU effectively
documented the FDEP's acceptance of a set of waste management practices and
procedures and formalized an agreement between the FDEP, the FCCA and its
members, and the Coast Guard to work together on discharge management proposals,
meeting on an annual basis. The cruise industry waste management practices and
procedures, as appended to the MOU, outlines environmentally responsible and
legally compliant practices and procedures for the minimization, reuse, and
recycling of wastes and specific procedures for improved management and disposal
of solid wastes, hazardous wastes, and wastewaters, including graywater,
blackwater, and bilgewater. Additional principles under the agreement included
compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations, development of
educational training for discharge management, and environmentally-friendly
cruise ship designs. The U.S. Coast Guard is also recognized as the onboard
inspection agency and a comprehensive inspection checklist for onboard
environmental compliance oversight has been developed jointly by the cruise
industry, the Coast Guard, and FDEP personnel. This group is working on a number
of tasks, including, for example, a resolution to the issue of numerous waste
tracking numbers being used to follow hazardous wastes transferred ashore in
different ports around the United States. Ultimately, the use of a single waste
tracking account number for all waste generated by a given ship will provide
more efficient management, tracking, and accountability.
California
In September 2000, the California Legislature passed, and Governor Gray Davis
signed, Assembly Bill AB 2746 (AB 2746). The objective of AB 2746 is to evaluate
the environmental practices and waste streams of large passenger vessels and
regulations pertaining thereto. AB 2746 called for the creation of the
California Environmental Protection Agency Cruise Ship Environmental Task Force,
composed of representatives from the State Water Resources Control Board,
Department of Fish and Game, Department of Toxic Substances Control, Integrated
Waste Management Board, State Lands Commission, and Air Resources Board. The
U.S. Coast Guard will also participate in the Task Force. The purpose of the
Task Force is to gather information necessary for the preparation of a report to
the Legislature due June 1, 2003. As stated in the bill, and as requested by the
task force, cruise vessel operators will provide records or information relating
to waste released or offloaded after January 1, 2001, from vessels in
California. Such information may be in the form of copied excerpts of records
and manifests, including oil record books, garbage record books and other ships
logs. The report of the Task Force is expected to: identify areas that may not
be adequately addressed by existing reporting requirements; identify
opportunities to improve coordination of regulatory efforts; and make
recommendations to the U.S. Coast Guard and State agencies to address any areas
where additional regulations or reporting may be appropriate.
CRUISE INDUSTRY INITIATIVES AND RELATED ACTIONS
The International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) is an industry trade
association representing sixteen major cruise operators. In August 2000, ICCL
and the U.S. Coast Guard jointly conducted an environmental management forum
during which the Coast Guard, the EPA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), various state
agencies, and public environmental advocacy groups were invited to discuss
industry waste management practices, environmental concerns, and existing
oversight mechanisms. This forum led to an industry initiative to develop a
guideline intended to propose more uniform environmental management practices.
This guideline, developed with the input of the EPA, the Coast Guard, and other
interested parties, is expected to provide guidance to all cruise ship operators
to ensure that management systems are uniform in the scope of the elements
addressed and to assure oversight agencies and the public that shipboard waste
management practices and procedures are being properly conducted.
Additionally, in an effort to better understand some of the technical issues
behind cruise ship discharges, the ICCL commissioned a dispersion analysis and
report. This study estimated the expected concentrations of wastewater
constituents following release from a "typical" cruise ship underway
at various speeds. The results of this analysis indicated that wastewater
constituents would disperse into the receiving waters with a dilution factor as
large as 111,000 (Kim 2000). The Northwest Cruise Ship Association (NWCA),
another industry trade association, conducted rudimentary water sampling studies
in the waters off Ketchikan Alaska, which indicated that constituent
concentrations likely drop off so quickly in the receiving waters that they
become essentially undetectable. Currently, the industry and the EPA plan to
cooperatively conduct a wastewater dispersion analysis in the spring of 2001
utilizing the R/V Anderson, a scientific research vessel. It is
envisioned that the R/V Anderson could trail behind a transiting cruise
ship taking concentration measurements. While there has been much preliminary
discussion, the detailed water sampling plan and testing protocols for
determining constituent or indicator dye concentrations in the actual receiving
waters are still under development.
Individual cruise lines operating in Alaska, the Caribbean, and elsewhere
have undertaken numerous initiatives to mitigate environmental effects, to
ensure legal compliance, and to exhibit their willingness and desire to be good
neighbors. Some of these initiatives include developmental efforts with
equipment vendors in wastewater treatment systems, partnerships with NOAA and
other research institutes, installation of onboard oceanic science labs, and the
purchase and installation of state-of-the-art shipboard machinery with improved
environmental performance. An indisputable sign of commitment to environmental
protection and good stewardship is the standby deployment of oil recovery barges
and equipment throughout the waters of Alaska.
CRUISE SHIP DISCHARGES
Graywater
Graywater is defined in 33 CFR 151.05 as drainage from dishwashers, showers,
laundry, bath, galleys, and washbasin drains and does not include drainage from
toilets, urinals, hospitals, and cargo spaces. It traditionally contains
suspended solids, classical pollutants, nutrients, and fecal coliform bacteria.
It might also contain organic compounds, petroleum hydrocarbons, oils and
greases, and metals. This constituent makeup presents some biological and
chemical oxygen demand on receiving waters. Cruise ship generation rates for
graywater have been estimated at about fifty gallons per person per day (Alaska
Cruise Ship Initiative 2000). For the typical ship undertaking a seven-day
voyage with a combined passenger and crew count of 3000 persons, this equates to
a total graywater generation volume of approximately 1.1 million gallons. Given
the physical and logistical impossibility of holding such total volumes for any
length of time, graywater is discharged in a controlled manner during the course
of the voyage. One possible discharge scenario can include collection of as much
as 300,000 gallons of graywater, then discharging it at pump rates as high as
several hundred gallons per minute. Discharging of collected graywater can occur
over several hours and as often as operationally necessary during the ship’s
voyage. Samples of graywater collected from Alaskan cruise operations have shown
relatively high levels of fecal coliform. The possible causes of such
higher-than-expected constituent concentrations and the potential impacts of
graywater constituents on the environment continue to be investigated.
GRAYWATER CONTROL
Graywater generated by cruise ships can be handled in several different ways
to ensure environmental protection. Generally, as technology is developed and
proven, graywater will be treated for reuse, treated for release to the
receiving waters, or converted to solid or gaseous form for ultimate destruction
or removal. Currently, graywater is collected and held for controlled discharge
in accordance with current requirements and industry practices.
One of the most promising treatment technologies involves the filtering of
contaminants from graywater, thereby reducing or eliminating the adverse
environmental impact potential of the discharge. Filtration equipment can be
configured into various shipboard systems from a number of commercial vendors,
both foreign and domestic. Each embodiment of the filtration technology employs
different filter media, preconditioning schemes, filter maintenance techniques,
and equipment packaging concepts. The levels to which contaminants are removed
can also vary. This variability is largely dependent on the particular filter
element design and rating, the nature of the influent graywater, and on the
effluent purity needs at the treated end. Water suitable for reuse in ship’s
laundries, machinery plants, for deck washing, and for other technical uses can
be produced with proper filtration from graywater. The theory of filtration
treatment allows for treatment to water quality suitable for human use,
including contact recreational use, bathing, and ingestion as drinking water.
Filtration systems are augmented with chemical, thermal, or radiant disinfection
processes to achieve discharge quality suitable for drinking.
Given the range of treated effluent quality available through filtration
treatment, effluent quality suitable for discharge to various receiving waters
can be achieved. Successful application of a commercially available and viable
filtration system can lead to environmentally protective, legally compliant, and
socially acceptable disposal of graywater from cruise ships.
To date, the industry’s experience with filtration systems, while limited,
has been basically successful in initial shipboard field tests. Some of the
technical difficulties anticipated from the deployment of filtration systems
have included installation delays, system throughput limits, and filter element
maintenance and ultimate life. Related to these issues are feasibility concerns
including space allocation, impacts to ship operations, reliability and
availability estimates, and cost. Some of the first treatment systems that have
been installed are continuing to undergo evaluation and data collection while
analyses of problems and issues continue in order to optimize system
installation and operation.
Beyond the various embodiments of filtration technologies, other graywater
treatment techniques include an activated oxidation process in which water
soluble organics in the graywater are destroyed by exposure to hydrogen peroxide
and ozone, as well as an electro-chemical flocculation process. Shipboard
treatment systems based on these techniques are also under evaluation for
throughput, effluent quality, reliability, maintenance requirements, and other
feasibility issues.
Collection and holding of graywater and treated blackwater until the
requisite discharge conditions are met, as provided for in the recent
Congressional enactment of the "Murkowski Bill," is a significant step
toward further precluding the possibility of adverse effects on receiving
waters. Such efforts at managing the handling of wastes is an effective, albeit
not technical, method of mitigating environmental risks.
Blackwater
Blackwater is defined as waste from toilets and urinals. Blackwater also
includes sink drainage from medical and dental facilities. The key measurable
characteristics of blackwater include fecal coliform count, suspended solids
concentration, nitrogen concentration, pH, and resultant biological and chemical
oxygen demand. Cruise ship generation rates for blackwater have been estimated
at about five gallons per person per day (Alaska Cruise Ship Initiative). For
the typical ship undertaking a seven-day voyage with a combined passenger and
crew count of 3000 persons, this equates to a total blac