Ponant has announced that it is the first international cruise line to be awarded by the Green Marine environmental certification program for its environmental standards. The initiative is described as distinguishing players in the maritime industry that exceed regulatory requirements, reduce their environmental footprint and continue to improve their performance year over year.
According to the cruise line, Green Marine’s environmental program offers a specific framework for port authorities, terminal operators, ship owners and shipyard managers to productively and measurably reduce their environmental footprint.
The program addresses a number of priority environmental issues through 13 performance indicators – seven of which are designated for shipowners. Assessed on a scale from 1 to 5, Ponant said it was evaluated across the following categories: underwater noise, pollution atmospheric emissions (NOX, SOX and PM), greenhouse gas emissions (CO2), invasive aquatic species, waste management and oil discharges. Ponant obtained an average of 4.4 and achieved Level 5 (leadership and excellence) for five of the seven indicators.
More than 145 Canadian and U.S. enterprises are said to currently participate in the North American program. Any international company is also eligible to obtain certification as long as it operates in North America. The certification process is independently verified every two years and the individual performance of each company is made public annually on the Green Marine website: https://green-marine.org/certification/results/.
“Our visions of tomorrow’s tourism, sustainable and responsible, prompts us to constantly impose ever more virtuous standards in terms of respect for the environment. Engaging in a rigorous certification and continual improvement process, such as the one offered by Green Marine, is natural,” stated Nicolas Dubreuil, Ponant’s Polar & Tropical Expedition Expert and Director of Sustainability.
“A halt to heavy fuel oil use, the utilization of the latest technological innovations, a dramatic reduction of single-use plastics, the implementation of environmental and societal impact studies, awareness-raising among our passengers, the creation of our foundation – we do everything we can to ensure that the environment’s preservation is at the heart of our actions.”
