Unfortunately, we estimate that using scrubbers results in higher direct and life-cycle CO 2 emissions than using marine gas oil, as well as higher particulate matter emissions, including of climate-warming black carbon. All this so that cruise ships can continue to use cheaper high-sulfur heavy fuel oil instead of more expensive low-sulfur fuels to comply with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) fuel sulfur regulations. The scrubber discharge water is contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heavy metals which have been linked to cancers and reproductive dysfunction in marine mammals. We expect to publish the results next year.įor those cruise ships that don’t run on LNG, many are currently using scrubbers that reroute pollution from the air into the water. To look into this more, the ICCT, in partnership with Explicit ApS and TNO, recently launched the FUgitive Methane Emissions from Ships ( FUMES) project, and we’ll be measuring real-world methane emissions from LNG-fueled ships, including cruise ships. This is called “methane slip” and the life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from these engines end up being higher than using low-sulfur marine gas oil, according to our research. While this reduces direct air pollution emissions, the types of engines that cruise ships use leak unburned methane into the atmosphere. Clarksons estimates that, by gross tonnage, half of new cruise ships being built today are designed to run on LNG. I know I said we’re leaving out methane, but it’s important to know that new cruise ships are increasingly opting for methane as fuel, in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). hotel, a passenger on a cruise ship emits about two times more CO 2 than someone who flies and rents a hotel. In this example, even accounting for emissions from an equivalent-night hotel stay at a 4-star U.S. Adding in the hotel emissions means an extra 15 kgCO 2 per night, so 75 kgCO 2, and the total is 235 kgCO 2. The same person flying by jet would emit 160 kgCO 2 on an average airline. So, if one person goes on a 5-night cruise that covers 2,000 km, at 250 gCO 2/pax-km (the most efficient cruise ship line) that passenger is responsible for 500 kgCO 2. For simplicity, let’s assume that CO 2e = CO 2. If we assume there are two people per room, we can cut that in half. According to a 2021 tool from Cornell, a 1-night stay in a 4-star hotel in the United States results in about 30 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (kgCO 2e) per room per night. But cruise ships also emit SLCPs, especially methane, and for simplicity here we’ll compare only CO 2 emissions in our cruise-ships-versus-airplanes analysis.Ĭruise ships double as floating hotels, so it’s only fair to also consider emissions from hotel stays for those who fly. While still uncertain, scientists’ best estimate is that the total (CO 2 plus SLCPs) climate impact of flying is about three times that of CO 2 alone. Counting the climate impacts of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) like methane, black carbon, and especially persistent contrails from aircraft would change the math. At 2,000 km, the average carbon intensity is approximately 80 gCO 2/pax-km, according to Figure 3 of this paper. Based on the data in ICCT’s most recent transatlantic aircraft emissions inventory, the industry average carbon intensity ranges from approximately 10 gCO 2/pax-km to 130 gCO 2/pax-km, with longer flights tending to have lower carbon intensity. How do the CO 2 emissions from cruising compare with those from flying? In our global shipping emissions inventory, we found that the world’s largest and most efficient cruise ships emit about 250 gCO 2/pax-km. But what if I told you that even the most efficient cruise ships emit more carbon dioxide per passenger kilometer (CO 2/pax-km) than a passenger jet? Cruising is a way to visit some of the most pristine and spectacular places on earth, and we hear a lot about how flying is bad for the climate, right? Right.
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