MICHIGAN, USA — Protecting the natural beauty of the Great Lakes. That’s the pledge being put front and center by the coalition, Cruise the Great Lakes, as the 2022 cruising season nears.
Cruise the Great Lakes, a coalition comprised of cruise lines, ports, convention and visitor bureaus, states, Canadian provinces, and others, is working to promote cruising on the Great Lakes as an alternative to larger oceangoing cruising. The coalition was formed a few years ago as popularity has grown of cruising on the waterways of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence seaway.
The coalition is hoping to strengthen their environmentally conscious cruising habits on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence waterways by the new pledge. The commitment will implement 19 environmentally friendly and sustainable cruising practices in four areas of focus – destination stewardship, air emissions and carbon reduction, wastewater, and recycling.
The pledge, including the 19 practices in the four areas of focus, can be found here.
“We wanted to make sure that people understood that our ships in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence, were coming into this area, with the thought of environmental travel in mind,” Dave Lorenz of Pure Michigan said. “So by doing that, we’re sending up fewer carbons in the air, our ships have made a pledge to try to use alternative fuels whenever possible. That means natural gas, biofuels, things like this, that means less carbons in the air as well. They’re looking at new and different ways to recycle, reuse,” he added.
Great Lakes cruising is much smaller as the vessel size is limited by the St. Lawrence Seaways’ lock system. This keeps passenger size to a few hundred at most compared to the few thousand that can be carried on oceangoing cruise ships.
The smaller physical and environmental footprint of Great Lakes cruise ships gives a comparative advantage in inherent sustainability, destination stewardship, and ready to take advantage of future green energy initiatives. However, as more cruise operators set sail in the Great Lakes due to increasing popularity, balancing the demand to its environmental footprint is key to the coalition.
“You know, we want people to come here to have a great time, but not to destroy our environment, when they’re visiting here,” Lorenz explains. “We want to be able to provide them a glimpse of the experience that we get to enjoy every day. And then we want them to leave only footprints and take only pictures. That’s what sustainable travel is all about,” he said.
As future technologies become available that may enhance sustainability and environmental performance, Cruise the Great Lakes is committed to evolve the pledge for the better of the Great Lakes.
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