NABU Emissions Study Not Science, says Cruise Ship Association

CLIA says cruise companies are leaders "in making substantial investments in environmental protection technologies and the promotion of responsible policies.

The Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union's (NABU) latest claims about the cruise ship industry's efforts to reduce emissions may not be based on scientific fact, World Maritime News reports.

As Ship & Bunker reported yesterday, the German union noted in its Cruise Ship Ranking 2015, presented in Hamburg last week, that although the vessels of major cruise lines are becoming cleaner, not enough ships are adopting technology that would cut emissions.

The ranking is said to have examined planned newbuilds until 2020 and took into account the type of fuels to propel the vessels, the emission abatement techniques to be used, as well as other reduction measures.

NABU named MSC Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, Viking Ocean, and Norwegian Cruise Line Corporation Ltd. in the lower end of its rankings, stating they can see "no reason to equip their new build ships with emission abatement techniques or to switch to low sulfur fuels."

But in an a statement emailed to World Maritime News, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) says Cruise Ship Ranking 2015 "is not an accurate reflection of the industry's leadership in this critical area."

The association went on to note that the air quality measurements taken by NABU last year, which led the union to compile its ranking, "fall short of fair and scientifically objective assessments."

The CLIA points out that although cruise ships account for less than one half of one percent of the global shipping fleet, cruise companies are leaders "in making substantial investments in environmental protection technologies and the promotion of responsible policies.

"These efforts have included new systems to reduce emissions of soot particles, sulfurous oxide, nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide by 90 percent and more."

The CLIA also cited the use of multi-stage scrubber systems that treat various emissions simultaneously.

In March, NABU released a study it said showed that scrubbers are no solution to vessel-generated air pollution.