We need to eliminate products and chemicals that impact the environment and make waste management difficult. We need to incorporate treatment technologies that will protect the environment in both existing and new vessels. We need to modify operations to eliminate the need to release pollutants. Dilution is not the solution to pollution. We must do better.
Many communities have the waste management or disposal capacity that can be part of a solution.
In other cases, the combined needs of a community and a vessel may provide the synergy needed to solve the problems for both. Such options provide alternatives for waste disposal that improve our stewardship of the environment. We need to improve our emergency preparedness. Cruise ships, because of the threat posed from bunker spills, need to contribute to the safety net for spill response and to search and rescue for casualties. We would like to say the risk is going down, but we are still waiting for a season without an incident.