Costa sets sail with sustainable project

The Sustainable Cruise waste-management project co-funded by the European Commission through the LIFE+ Program, the European Union’s funding instrument for environmental projects, is under way aboard Costa Pacifica. The project seeks to stimulate implementation of the EU directive on waste on board ships and create incentives for waste reduction, recycling and reuse. Ernesto Gori, Costa Cruises vice-president, quality standards compliance and auditing, said: “We are very proud to be managing this highly innovative project on board Costa Pacifica, which will be the pilot ship for new models of management of certain types of solid waste.” Gori pointed out that: “The fact that we are the first cruise company in the world to carry out such a landmark experiment, which will lead to even higher standards in the treatment of shipboard waste, is further tangible evidence of our environmental excellence.” Costa Cruises is the project manager, and devised the proposal and presented it to the EU together with Centro interuniversitario per lo Sviluppo della Sostenibilitdei Prodotti and the Italian enterprises VOMM, Contento Trade, Design Innovation, RINA Services and Medcruise, the association of Mediterranean cruise ports. Costa Pacifica (114,500 gross tons and 3,780 total guests), which entered service in 2009, was chosen to pilot the world?s first shipboard experimental project using innovative techniques and methods for packaging, biodegradable (organic) waste and paper, with specific objectives for reduction at the source and recycling. Go to http://www.sustainablecruise.eu or visit http://www.costacruise.com/Best4 for more.