March 21st, 2011 
Tushar Mathur Friends of the Earth (FOE), a federation of 76 international environmental organizations, posted the Cruise Ship Environmental Report Card. In the report, the cruise lines such as cunard cruises are evaluated based on three criteria: sewage treatment, air pollution reduction, and water quality compliance.
In the FOE report card, the cruise lines are graded from A to F, depending on their compliance to the standards set for each criteria. The grade for water compliance is based on the environmental standards set to protect the Alaskan Coast. Ships are evaluated for sewage treatment based on their on-board wastewater and sewerage systems. For air pollution reduction, only cruise lines that dock in shore side power grids in ports along the North American coastlines were graded.
The following are just three of the cruise lines listed in the report. Let’s take a look at the range of green ideas, innovations and technology implemented by each line to reduce their carbon footprint, and see if they deserve their grades in the report card.
Holland America Line
Holland America Line (HAL) received the highest rating among the cruise lines in the FOE report. They have an over-all rating of B- and have received high and passing marks in all three criteria. All of HAL’s ships have recycling programs and advanced wastewater treatment systems in place. They also use off shore energy grids to power their engines and to reduce fuel consumption and emissions. Environmental officers train crew and monitor over-all compliance with environmental policies and standards.
Disney Cruise Line
The Disney Cruise Line, affiliated with the Walt Disney Company in Florida, has a fleet of two ships, Disney Magic and Disney Wonder. They received an over all grade of C- and adjudged as the most improved cruise line on the list. In an effort to reduce waste and energy consumption, initiatives like automated air conditioning systems, energy efficient lighting, and reduction of shipboard weight have been implemented. They also have a water reclamation system that reuses condensation from air conditioning units for cleaning purposes. Excess engine boiler heat is used in the process of converting sea water into potable drinking water.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Although Regent Seven Seas Cruises received an over-all grade of C-, it has a high rating of A for water compliance. They have a wastewater treatment system on board that efficiently reuses water for cleaning, washing decks, and cooling engines. As a policy, they firmly disallow disposal of any material at sea.They also have an environmental officer on board to ensure compliance with proper environmental standards and practices. However, their fleet of ships are not plug in capable, and this severely pulled their grade down in the air pollution reduction category
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