Seattle Climate Activists Protest Carnival Cruise Line with Action at Downtown Seattle Cruise Terminal

Seattle, WA, May 08, 2017 -- Climate activists marked the beginning of Alaska cruise season by greeting passengers on the Carnival Legend, which is bound for the glaciers of Alaska, with a 10’ x 20’ banner reading, “Carnival Stop Polluting the Climate.”

While other industries are working to reduce their climate pollution, Carnival, the largest cruise company in the world, has increased its climate pollution by nearly 20% over the last decade. In fact, the collective pollution created by the full Carnival fleet of ship is equivalent to the combined climate pollution produced by all the cars in Alaska, Wyoming, Vermont, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Delaware, and Rhode Island.

"Although Carnival claims to be environmentally responsible, its ships create more climate pollution than any other cruise company in the world,” said Sean Rudolph, Climate Campaign Director at Stand.earth. “For many people, a cruise is the trip of a lifetime. Passengers have the right to know about Carnival’s impact on the very destinations, such as the Arctic, that they are so excited to explore. They also deserve the ability to make their voices heard and demand that Carnival clean up its dirty ships.”

Cruises and the shipping industry are among the fastest growing sources of climate pollution. This is in part because cruise ships and the shipping industry use one of the dirtiest fuels in the world, called bunker fuel. On land, bunker fuel would be considered a hazardous waste, but it is allowed to be used at sea. Bunker fuel produces harmful and significantly higher emissions of Sulphur Dioxides, Nitrogen Oxides and Black Carbon than other fuels.  Black Carbon is a major contributor to climate change, accounting for almost 50% of warming in the Arctic. Without urgent action by cruise and shipping companies, climate pollution created by the shipping industry is predicted to increase 250% by 2050 and account for nearly 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions. 

Stand.earth, formerly ForestEthics, challenges corporations and governments to put the health and well-being of people and the environment first, because all of our lives depend on it.

For more information, visit www.Stand.earth.

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/afad36eb-d83a-4d21-aa33-3da7255fbb24

Sean Rudolph
Stand.earth
[email protected]