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range of anti-pollution measures introduced on a voluntary basis
in April 2022 will become obligatory with immediate effect,
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said in a statement.
Environmental groups said Ottawa had ignored the largest source
of liquid pollution from cruise ships: the water used to clean
exhaust gas cleaning systems, or scrubbers, that remove sulfur
from ships' fuel.
"Cruise ships are an important part of our economy and tourism
sector, but they need to operate in a more sustainable manner,"
Alghabra said. Cruise ships generate more than C$4 billion a
year for the economy, he added.
The rules ban the discharge of sewage and so-called greywater -
the drainage from sinks, laundry machines, bathtubs and showers
- within three nautical miles of Canadian shores.
Additionally, ships in non-Arctic waters will have to strengthen
the treatments of sewage and greywater dumped between three and
12 nautical miles from shore. Separate rules regulate cruise
ship pollution in Arctic waters.
Environmentalists say cruise ships traveling to and from Alaska
alone dumped 31 billion liters (8.2 billion U.S. gallons) of
inadequately treated pollution into Canada's Pacific waters in
2019.
In statements, the West Coast Environmental Law and stand.earth
green groups both welcomed Alghabra's announcement but called
for regulations on scrubber water, which accounts for over 90%
of the liquid waste from cruise ships. Activists say it is
particularly acidic.
They also called for inspectors to be put on board vessels.
A spokeswoman for Alghabra said the government would work with
the shipping industry to find a feasible way of reducing or
eliminating discharge of scrubber water.
($1 = 1.3199 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Richard Chang)
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