THE SENATE

S.R. NO.

111

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


SENATE RESOLUTION

 

requesting the cruise ship industry to pay the full cost of developing and operating a WASTEWATER infrastructure system.

 

WHEREAS, cruise ships are floating cities that produce enormous volumes of completely unregulated or inadequately regulated waste; and

WHEREAS, today's largest ships can transport more than 5,000 passengers and crew, and have the capacity to generate more than 11 million gallons of wastewater every day, as well as carry significant amounts of hazardous chemicals from onboard printing, photo processing, and dry cleaning operations; and

WHEREAS, the condition of water surrounding Hawaii is important not only for public health but for the health of the tourism industry; and

WHEREAS, with the recent expansion of the cruise ship industry in Hawaii, the risk of accidental and intentional release of untreated effluent increases; and

WHEREAS, cruise lines have become a significant part of Hawaii's economy and some places--such as Hilo, Kauai and parts of Maui--have a high level of economic dependence on the ship-borne tourists; and

WHEREAS, it is in the cruise lines' own financial interest to be more than ordinarily careful about the environment; and

WHEREAS, cruise lines marketing Hawaii and other destinations try to bring people to the most beautiful places in the world and that means those places have to be kept beautiful; and

WHEREAS, the development of a wastewater infrastructure system for cruise ships can significantly reduce the amount of pollutants in Hawaii's waters; and

WHEREAS, in a memorandum of understanding signed October 25, 2002, by then Governor Benjamin Cayetano and the North West CruiseShip Association, the cruise ship industry pledged to cooperate and comply with efforts to reduce wastewater discharges from cruise ships operating off Hawaii's coastline; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that the cruise ship industry is requested to pay the full cost of developing and operating a wastewater infrastructure system capable of processing all wastewater from cruise ships to reduce the amount of pollutants released into Hawaii's waters; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Department of Transportation, North West CruiseShip Association, representing Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, World Explorer, Radisson Seven Seas and Seabourn, as representatives of the cruise ship industry in Hawaii.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Cruise Ships; Wastewater Infrastructure