Global Warming & The Cruise Industry

The travel and tourism industry is catching on quickly about how to neutralize its own global warming related impacts from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. One industry, however, has remained relatively silent, so much so that Boulder, CO based non-profit Sustainable Travel International (STI) recently challenged it! to answer the question, "Where does the cruise ship industry stand on the issue of global climate change?"

"Cruise line industry operations are one of the biggest contributors to global warming related GHG emissions within the travel and tourism industry" explains STI Vice President Peter D. Krahenbuhl, "and ironically, this will impact the very places they depend on for business, particularly low-lying islands and coastal destinations." The rapid expansion of the cruise ship industry has triggered a public outcry for the industry to address its pollution-related impacts, as environmental laws have not kept pace with industry growth. "Some cruise lines are beginning to improve environmental performance through technology and improved management systems, but none of the major cruise lines have opted to support voluntary carbon offset initiatives," Krahenbu! concludes.

One expedition cruise company, however, has stepped up to STI's challenge. Adventure Smith Explorations offers expedition cruises and wilderness adventures in a pioneering approach that utilizes small ships and yachts to explore nature and wildlife up close. The company is the first North American-based small cruise ship operator to offset it passengers' fuel consumption related emissions through STI and MyClimate. The company is also working toward implementing a system wide program focused on educating its guests about global warming and related impacts on the regions they visit, including offering a custom on-line calculator that STI has pioneered for the tourism industry.

"The number of inquiries we receive from conscientious consumers interested in traveling by boat is on the increase, as more and more people become interested in minimizing their air travel and other travel-related climate impacts," adds Brian T. Mullis, STI's President. "Unfortunately, we haven't had a company to refer them to until now. Fortunately, we are working with other cruise ship companies to calculate their GHG emissions, but it remains to be seen which major cruise ship company will be the first to go truly green, and reap the benefits of doing so."

For further information on Sustainable Travel International and MyClimate,  visit www.my-climate.com .

About MyClimate
The MyClimate foundation is one of the leading providers of high-quality carbon offset certificates for climate neutral business and leisure travel, conferences and events, home and office energy consumption and the like. MyClimate projects are developed in accordance with procedures, criteria and methodologies from the clean development mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto protocol and the criteria! of the Gold Standard. Projects are inspected, verified and certified by independent, third-party organizations. Depending on the project size and type, bygone validation have taken place either through UNFCCC-accredited certification institutes (Designated ! Operatio nal Entities) such as the SGS, T?V and DNV or by a board of experts from Swiss universities, which have assessed the very small projects in the past.

About Sustainable Travel International
STI is the North American distributor of MyClimate, and promotes sustainable development and eco-friendly travel by providing programs that help travelers, travel-related companies and destinations protect the places they visit, the places they call home, and the planet at large.

31 August 2006