Cruise ships are all the rage these days, offering a way for aspiring travelers to visit exotic locales while still residing in relative luxury. Although, as the demand for floating vacations continues to grow, there has been an ever-increasing concern about the potential environmental impact.
Every day, consumers are becoming more and more eco-conscience, and if companies want to compete in today’s global marketplace, they are going to have to adapt.
One travel company that is leading the charge in adopting new eco-friendly practices is none other than Norwegian cruise line, Hurtigruten, who are well known for their Arctic cruises and trips through Norway’s fjords.
Not only have they already banned single-use plastic containers on their ships, they now have plans in the works to power their next fleet of cruise ships largely by using liquefied biogas.
In other words, Hurtigruten will power their ships by using dead fish.
Liquefied biogas really might be the ultimate green energy alternative. The secret is that as the dead fish and other organic waste decomposes, it releases biomethane, a form of natural gas that they can use to power the ship’s engine. The best part about this fuel source is that it is 100% renewable.
In a statement on their company website, CEO of Hurtigruten, Daniel Skjeldam, elaborated on the concept:
By introducing biogas as fuel for cruise ships, Hurtigruten will be the first cruise company to power ships with fossil-free fuel,” Skjeldam said.
“While competitors are running on cheap and polluting heavy fuel oil (HFO), our ships will literally be powered by nature. Biogas is the greenest fuel in shipping and will be a huge advantage for the environment. We would love other cruise companies to follow.”
Most companies in the shipping industry currently use a high-sulfur fuel which produces harmful sulfur oxides that contribute to the acidification of seas and rain.
If more cruise operators switched over to using renewable fuel sources, it would go a long ways towards helping the environment.
The daily emissions from a single cruise ship often equal about the same amount as one million cars. Couple this with the fact that there are over 300 mega cruise ships in the world right now, and it is easy to see the kind of damage that is being done.
However, there is plenty of reason to be optimistic. Hurtigruten plans to have at least six ships running on the liquefied biogas by 2021, and more to come in the future.
“This is just the beginning. Hurtigruten is the world’s largest expedition cruise line, and that comes with a responsibility. Sustainability will be a key driver for the new era of shipping and the travel industry… our ultimate goal is to operate our ships completely emission-free,” Skjeldam said.
Completely emission-free ships? A lofty goal indeed, but one we hope that many other companies will follow suit on and start pursuing.
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