Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest cruise company, has set out to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 25% by 2020.
The target is part of 10 new sustainability goals released by Carnival this week and aimed at reducing the company’s environmental footprint over the next five years, enhancing the health, safety and security of its guests and crewmembers, and ensuring sustainable business practices.
The new goals follow Carnival Corporation announcement in November 2014 that it had met its corporate goal to reduce its rate of equivalent carbon dioxide (CO2e) emissions from shipboard operations by 20 percent – a year ahead of its initial plan.
“Across our 10 brands, we host millions of guests a year and visit 725 ports of call around the world, and the health and vitality of the oceans, seas and communities through which we travel is absolutely essential to our business,” said Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation. “That makes protecting the environment one of our most critical areas of focus as a corporation, and it is why it is important for us to publicly communicate our sustainability goals.”
Added Donald: “All of our 120,000 employees not only take great pride in making sure our guests have the vacation of a lifetime, but we are all deeply committed to protecting the oceans and seas, which is where many of our employees live and work for a good part of the year. We have a strong track record of environmental stewardship, and we remain more committed than ever to improving our performance, while ensuring we operate our entire business in the most sustainable way possible.”
With 10 global brands, 100 ships and 11 million annual guests, Carnival is the world’s largest travel and leisure company.
Below is a summary provided by Carnival on the full 2020 sustainability goals:
Reduce intensity of carbon dioxide emissions from operations
After meeting its initial goal a year ahead of schedule, Carnival Corporation has renewed its goal to continue reducing the rate of CO2e emissions – also known as greenhouse gas emissions – by 25 percent from its 2005 baseline. This renewed goal for 2020 extends and reinforces the company’s aggressive initiative to further reduce the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions. As part of the effort, the company and its 10 global brands have developed strategic energy reduction and conservation initiatives, many of which exceed current laws and regulations.
One such initiative is the company’s recent announcement that its four next-generation cruise ships for Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises will be the first in the industry to be powered at sea by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), one of the world’s cleanest burning fossil fuels. Pioneering a new era in the use of low carbon fuels, these new ships will use LNG to generate 100 percent of the ship’s power both in port and on the open sea – an innovation that will significantly reduce exhaust emissions to help protect the environment and support overall sustainability initiatives. Additionally, when AIDAprima launches in 2016, it will be the first cruise ship in the world that has a dual-fuel engine for an energy supply with LNG while in port, along with a connection to shoreside power and an extensive filter system for the treatment of exhaust.
Install exhaust gas cleaning systems
As part of the company’s commitment to improving the quality of its air emissions from its shipboard operations, it has made a $400 million investment to develop, deploy and operate exhaust gas cleaning systems that reduce sulfur compounds and particular matter from the ships’ engine exhaust. As announced in September 2013, Carnival Corporation pioneered an industry-first effort to adapt a proven land-based exhaust gas cleaning technology to use on its ships. Carnival Corporation’s system combines two established technologies that have been successfully used in land-based applications such as power plants and factories to clean – or “scrub” – engine exhaust. For the first time, this system is being developed to accommodate restricted spaces on existing ships.
Continue to reduce waste generated by shipboard operations
Carnival Corporation will continue to reduce waste generated by its shipboard operations by 5 percent by 2020 relative to its 2010 baseline, as measured by kilograms of non-recycled waste per person per day.
Every Carnival Corporation ship has a waste management plan that specifies how it manages each type of waste onboard. This includes incorporating various strategies to reduce the generation of waste. In addition, as part of its sustainability initiatives, Carnival Corporation works with its supply chain partners to reduce packaging and with its ports of call to support recycling practices.
Continue to increase water use efficiency
Carnival Corporation will continue to improve water use efficiency on its ships by 5 percent by 2020 relative to its 2010 baseline, as measured by liters per person per day.
Water is essential to Carnival Corporation’s business, so water management – and increasing the rate of water efficiency on every ship — is a major priority. Carnival Corporation uses shipboard systems to produce approximately 73 percent of the water it uses onboard. The remaining 27 percent is supplied from the ports and from water companies in the ports where the company’s ships call. This percentage varies from ship to ship, depending on itineraries.
Carnival Corporation encourages its guests to be aware of their own impact on the environment. The company educates its guests by providing, for example, environmental awareness information to passengers in a range of media, including pamphlets, videos and posters. Guests also participate in water efficiency initiatives by reusing towels and minimizing use whenever possible.
Increase coverage of Advanced Wastewater Purification Systems
An additional sustainability goal is to increase the percentage of the company’s capacity with Advanced Waste Water Purification Systems (AWWPS) by 10 percentage points by 2020 compared to its 2014 baseline. The company follows rigorous protocols to properly remove and dispose of wastewater to further protect the environment. New ships are more efficiently designed and include the latest technologies. As part of the company’s sustainability effort, all new ships are equipped with AWWPS.
Increase cold ironing capacity
Carnival Corporation’s goal is to increase the number of its ships with cold ironing capability – which allows ships to connect to a port’s electrical grid as the in-port power source. While only six ports in the world currently have the infrastructure to allow cruise ships to do so, being able to connect to shore power reduces air emissions, a benefit to improving air quality while ships are in port.
Each of the company’s 18 new ships entering service between 2015 and 2022 will be more efficient and sustainable than existing ships in the fleet and will include onboard Advanced Waste Water Purification Systems, exhaust gas cleaning technology and cold ironing capabilities.
Health, Safety and Security Goals
Protect health, safety and security of guests, crew and all others working on behalf of company
Striving to be free of injuries, Carnival Corporation continues to build on its commitment to protect the health, safety and security of its guests and crew. The company is identifying improvement areas within and across brands to implement occupational health and safety best practices, standards and processes.
Sustainable Workforce and Community Goals
Continue to build a sustainable diverse workforce
The company continues to build a diverse and inclusive workforce. Its goal is to provide all employees with a positive work environment and opportunities to build a rewarding career to further drive employee engagement.
Continue to develop sustainable supply chain and vendor code of conduct compliance
Carnival Corporation continues to develop and implement vendor assurance procedures ensuring compliance with the company’s Business Partner Code of Conduct and Ethics. This includes the areas of labor and human rights, environmental protection, business integrity and health, safety and security.
Continue to work on and support initiatives with local and global communities
The company is working on initiatives and partnerships that support and sponsor a broad range of organizations for the benefit of local and global communities.
In June 2014 the Carnival Foundation donated $2.5 million over a five-year period to The Nature Conservancy, one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, to advance the preservation of the world’s oceans and seas. Carnival Corporation’s support to The Nature Conservancy will significantly accelerate the coral reefs restoration initiatives, enhance the value of marine ecosystem services through the Mapping Ocean Wealth program and continue to advance important science that shows how natural systems can help reduce risks to coastal communities from storms and rising sea levels.
In June 2015, the company launched Fathom, the company’s 10th brand, creating a new travel category called social impact travel. Fathom is a different kind of cruise that combines the love of travel with a desire to make a difference. The new brand seeks to develop lasting social impact partnerships that allow for meaningful enrichment of the traveler, while providing systematic, long-term educational, environmental and economic development benefits in its partner countries – starting with the Dominican Republic in April 2016 and Cuba in May 2016 pending Cuban approval. Because Fathom will regularly transport hundreds of travelers to its partner countries, the support will be significant and sustainable – allowing Fathom travelers to make long-lasting contributions.
Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and vibrant community discussions.
Join the 109,771 members that receive our newsletter.
Have a news tip? Let us know.
Denmark has rejected a Japanese request to extradite anti-whaling activist Paul Watson over criminal charges dating back more than a decade, a Danish lawyer representing Watson said on Tuesday.
A 37-year-old crew member was saved after spending three harrowing days adrift at sea following alleged abuse aboard a fishing vessel. Afif Efendy, a crew member of the fishing vessel...
British oil and gas major Shell on Tuesday settled a London lawsuit it brought against environmental group Greenpeace after activists boarded a Shell oil production vessel last year.
Maritime and offshore news trusted by our 109,771 members delivered daily straight to your inbox.
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
Sign Up
Join The Club
