TIMELINE OF EVENTS

Sustainability Issue in the Caribbean

The Affect of Cruise Ships on the Caribbean

      Cruise ships became popular in the 1970's as a way of simultaneously traveling and vacationing. The cruise ship industry has grown over one thousand percent since then, and so has the size of the ships. Although cruises can be extremely luxurious and great family vacations, they have proved to be harmful to our oceans and the air we breathe. Sewage, wastewater, toxic wastes and solid wastes are discharged into the ocean as close as three miles offshore. These pollutants have destroyed both coral reefs and aquatic life in the Caribbean. Some of the most recent data states that the emissions from cruise ships are equal to that of fourteen cars. Cruise ships are also said to produce at least seventeen percent of the total emissions of nitrogen oxides. Initiatives must be taken in order to preserve coral reefs and the creatures that inhibit them.

http://act.oceanconservancy.org/site/DocServer/fscruiseships.pdf?docID=102 

http://blog.italygreentravel.com/2013/07/how-does-cruise-ships-impact-on-the-environment/