R
research@traveljust.org
Guest
Barbara Yaffe informatively conveys a perspective that goes against
the tide of so many 'industry-placed' news pieces in Canada.
Those big cruise ships are also big polluters
Barbara Yaffe
Vancouver Sun
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Those sparkling white behemoths that each year at this time begin
sidling up to Coal Harbour piers bring far more than tourists and
their cash.
Cruise ships are purveyors of some pretty putrid pollution and, in an
age of all things green, are posing a stiff political challenge for
government.
This week, Environment Minister John Baird and Transportation Minister
Lawrence Cannon -- keen to convince Canadians the Harper government
has got on board the eco-program -- announced changes to the Canada
Shipping Act.
Boasted the cabinet ministers, the changes are aimed at "making Canada
a leader in the prevention of marine pollution."
In fact, the new regulations aren't as proactive as they sound.
They merely try to bring Canada in line with still-optional provisions
of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from
Ships.
The announcement was a component of the Harper government's National
Water Strategy, first unveiled as part of the 2007 budget, according
to a federal press release.
Human beings, of course, tend to be a bit lax about what they cannot
see.
And since ships operating at sea, both of the cruise and cargo
variety, are mostly out of sight and mind, they've been operating with
relative impunity
-- in Canada, at least -- spewing and belching substances and
chemicals you don't want to know about.
Governments wish they didn't have to know about this stuff, either.
After
all, who wants to offend an industry that during the tourist season
daily deposits thousands of well-heeled consumers on one's doorstep?
The cruise industry is worth $500 million annually to B.C. It's the
second-largest generator of jobs and economic output at Vancouver's
port.
So perhaps it isn't surprising that B.C. has a reputation for casual
neglect when it comes to policing cruise ships, in contrast to both
Washington State and Alaska. Indeed, it's the federal government, not
the province, that does the policing around provincial waters.
Alaska's state government, meanwhile, has instituted for the 2007
season a rigorous enforcement regime that calls for the stationing of
a marine engineer on every ship operating in Alaskan waters. The
engineer will monitor waste-treatment practices and scrutinize
discharges.
Such vigilance is clearly warranted.
Ross Klein, a sociology prof at Memorial University in Newfoundland,
has made a side career of critiquing the industry from his perch in
St.
John's.
My home printer ran out of paper running off a list Klein has compiled
of known pollution and environmental violations committed by cruise
ships going back to 1992.
The list, by the way, was devoid of Canadian incidents, which has led
Klein to question Canadian monitoring and enforcement standards
(www.cruisejunkie.com/envirofines).
Ships on the miscreant list were found guilty of shocking stuff:
Damaging
delicate reefs; bumping into whales; dumping raw sewage straight into
an Orca habitat area; discharging oil and diesel fuel.
In several recorded cases, crew members just dropped plastic bags of
garbage from the side of ships or allowed oil-based paint to spill
into ports.
So will the Harper government's new regulations force ships to start
minding their Ps and Qs in Canadian waters?
One B.C.-based environment group, Travel Just, declares that the newly
announced regulations deserve "a big poopie award."
Howard Breen, the group's spokesman, says in a news release that the
federal initiative constitutes "a greenwash of oceanic magnitude." He
insists the regulations aren't nearly tough enough and lack specific
harsh penalties and adequate enforcement measures.
Breen cites the need for a beefed-up inspection regime by Transport
Canada by way of independent observers to inspect vessels plying West
Coast waters.
He also wants a system of waste-compliance monitoring through
installation of electronic transponders on cruise ships.
Breen points out that B.C. has highly sensitive marine ecosystems and
20 endangered coastal species that stand to be negatively affected by
cruise ship pollution.
A pursuit such as the cruise ship industry might have been
environmentally overlooked in the past, but these days no sector can
escape scrutiny.
Not
even one that is single-mindedly devoted to fun, frolic and escape
from the real world.
C The Vancouver Sun 2007
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/columnists/story.html?id=a19d0f3a-8a3a-4b
c6-9bab-430889d0c2d3
the tide of so many 'industry-placed' news pieces in Canada.
Those big cruise ships are also big polluters
Barbara Yaffe
Vancouver Sun
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Those sparkling white behemoths that each year at this time begin
sidling up to Coal Harbour piers bring far more than tourists and
their cash.
Cruise ships are purveyors of some pretty putrid pollution and, in an
age of all things green, are posing a stiff political challenge for
government.
This week, Environment Minister John Baird and Transportation Minister
Lawrence Cannon -- keen to convince Canadians the Harper government
has got on board the eco-program -- announced changes to the Canada
Shipping Act.
Boasted the cabinet ministers, the changes are aimed at "making Canada
a leader in the prevention of marine pollution."
In fact, the new regulations aren't as proactive as they sound.
They merely try to bring Canada in line with still-optional provisions
of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from
Ships.
The announcement was a component of the Harper government's National
Water Strategy, first unveiled as part of the 2007 budget, according
to a federal press release.
Human beings, of course, tend to be a bit lax about what they cannot
see.
And since ships operating at sea, both of the cruise and cargo
variety, are mostly out of sight and mind, they've been operating with
relative impunity
-- in Canada, at least -- spewing and belching substances and
chemicals you don't want to know about.
Governments wish they didn't have to know about this stuff, either.
After
all, who wants to offend an industry that during the tourist season
daily deposits thousands of well-heeled consumers on one's doorstep?
The cruise industry is worth $500 million annually to B.C. It's the
second-largest generator of jobs and economic output at Vancouver's
port.
So perhaps it isn't surprising that B.C. has a reputation for casual
neglect when it comes to policing cruise ships, in contrast to both
Washington State and Alaska. Indeed, it's the federal government, not
the province, that does the policing around provincial waters.
Alaska's state government, meanwhile, has instituted for the 2007
season a rigorous enforcement regime that calls for the stationing of
a marine engineer on every ship operating in Alaskan waters. The
engineer will monitor waste-treatment practices and scrutinize
discharges.
Such vigilance is clearly warranted.
Ross Klein, a sociology prof at Memorial University in Newfoundland,
has made a side career of critiquing the industry from his perch in
St.
John's.
My home printer ran out of paper running off a list Klein has compiled
of known pollution and environmental violations committed by cruise
ships going back to 1992.
The list, by the way, was devoid of Canadian incidents, which has led
Klein to question Canadian monitoring and enforcement standards
(www.cruisejunkie.com/envirofines).
Ships on the miscreant list were found guilty of shocking stuff:
Damaging
delicate reefs; bumping into whales; dumping raw sewage straight into
an Orca habitat area; discharging oil and diesel fuel.
In several recorded cases, crew members just dropped plastic bags of
garbage from the side of ships or allowed oil-based paint to spill
into ports.
So will the Harper government's new regulations force ships to start
minding their Ps and Qs in Canadian waters?
One B.C.-based environment group, Travel Just, declares that the newly
announced regulations deserve "a big poopie award."
Howard Breen, the group's spokesman, says in a news release that the
federal initiative constitutes "a greenwash of oceanic magnitude." He
insists the regulations aren't nearly tough enough and lack specific
harsh penalties and adequate enforcement measures.
Breen cites the need for a beefed-up inspection regime by Transport
Canada by way of independent observers to inspect vessels plying West
Coast waters.
He also wants a system of waste-compliance monitoring through
installation of electronic transponders on cruise ships.
Breen points out that B.C. has highly sensitive marine ecosystems and
20 endangered coastal species that stand to be negatively affected by
cruise ship pollution.
A pursuit such as the cruise ship industry might have been
environmentally overlooked in the past, but these days no sector can
escape scrutiny.
Not
even one that is single-mindedly devoted to fun, frolic and escape
from the real world.
C The Vancouver Sun 2007
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/columnists/story.html?id=a19d0f3a-8a3a-4b
c6-9bab-430889d0c2d3
