By
Rebecca Gibson |
Carnival Corporation is to “significantly eliminate” its purchase and consumption of non-essential single-use plastics across its nine cruise brands by the end of 2021.
Introduced as part of its expanded Operation Oceans Alive programme, the single-use plastic initiative will see Carnival Corporation and its brands continue to reduce or eliminate single-use plastic items that are not used for sanitary or public health-related purposes. They include plastic cups, straws, lids and bags, as well as other single-use plastics and decorative items used in staterooms and food and beverage services. The corporation is also exploring ways to eliminate individual servings of select packaged food items.
Carnival Corporation’s strict Health, Environment, Safety and Security Policy and national and international regulations mean that there are certain single-use plastic items that cannot be eliminated. Examples include plastic trash can liners in common areas and sanitary gloves.
“We recognise that to be a responsible global organisation, a good corporate citizen and the environmental leader our guests expect us to be, we need to continue to take proactive measures to ensure sustainability is ingrained in all aspects of our operation across our nine global cruise brands,” said Bill Burke, chief maritime officer for Carnival Corporation. “Our Operation Oceans Alive platform and this initiative to dramatically reduce single-use plastics across our global fleet are just some of the ways we are committed to continuously enhancing our operations and focus on environmental compliance and excellence.”
Carnival Corporation’s Operation Oceans Alive programme was introduced internally in January 2018 and is designed to support its sustainability goals for protecting the oceans and destinations in which it operates. The corporation has already implemented technology solutions to improve operational sustainability, accelerated environmental training efforts for employees and created a culture of environmental stewardship across its brands. Now additional funding and staff will enable it to expand the initiative externally as a platform for achieving and sustaining environmental compliance.