Royal Caribbean Caught Again
-- an investigative interview

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Royal Caribbean Caught Again

We were horrified to read the New York Times investigative story a few weeks ago about cruise ships that have been dumping oil into the ocean. The Coast Guard and the Justice Department had launched a four-year inquiry leading to the discovery that ships in the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line were dumping oily waste into the ocean.

The company pleaded guilty last June and agreed to pay a $9 million fine. But then, another of their ships did it again the following month!

See what Royal Caribbean has to say

Turns out, it's very hard to police the cruise industry due to the difficulty of regulating international waters. Therefore, you can't really determine the prevalence of the problem.

I asked Captain Jeffrey Powers works for the US Coast Guard in the department of Marine Safety and Environmental Protection. I asked him to stop by to help us understand how this sort of thing happens.

For those of us who haven't seen a cruise ship up close, Power's description of the size gives an idea of how much damaging waste one of these ships can hold.

Special Note: According to Captain Powers, there's no central place for us to find out which cruise lines are the biggest offenders. So if you're a concerned, committed cruiser, it sounds like your best recourse is to lug your video camera with you on your next big trip.