Every year, thousands of people are going on exotic cruise trips. They do not understand that most cruise ships are owned by American organizations but may not be protected by American law. Many crimes happen on these cruise ships, like dumping tons of dangerous waste and sewage into the ocean. All these crimes go unpunished.
Cruise Holiday Secrets
Three companies rule the cruise industry: Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean International, and Norwegian Cruise Line. Together they own 82 percent of the market and have a strong influence in Washington, D.C. They spend millions of dollars lobbying to block stronger regulations regarding the industry.
Waste In Oceans: Cruise Ships And Legal Systems
Royal Caribbean is registered in Liberia. Cruiseship Norwegian is registered in Bermuda and Carnival in Panama. And what do these countries have in common: they are all tax havens with a dark legal system. Cruise convoys are trying to bypass American labor laws.
How Cruise Ships Are Destroying The World
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Waste In Oceans: There Is No Police Department At Sea
There are hundreds of crimes a year on these cruise ships. The responsibility to investigate these felonies is in the authorities' hands in the country where the company is registered. When a crime occurs onboard, crew members - who are not legally competent - gather evidence and conduct an initial investigation. Sexual assault and rape are the most common crimes on board. The majority of the victims are minors. Passengers who are U.C. citizens can call the police, FBI, or embassy at the next port, but they do not know that this is possible. The majority of the crew members are foreigners and can only report the country's crime where the company is registered.
These ocean liners possess large diesel engines with exhausts that potentially pollute the air with sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, the main components of acid rain.
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Dirty Cruise Holiday Secrets: 70-Hour Weeks And No Days Off
The salaries for crew members on a cruise ship are meager. The base salaries range from $1,000 to $1,500 a month. But if you work in the laundry or warehouse, it is only $600 a month. Some writers earn only $50 and have to depend on tips. Most of the employees come from Latin America, the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe. Their contracts are subject to the labor laws in which the company is registered. Problems with their contracts need to be solved through a private arbitrator outside the United States.
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Waste In Oceans: Cruise Ships Are Pouring Sewage Into The Ocean
A ship that travels for seven days with 3,000 passengers and crew members has a waste of 210,000 gallons of sewage, 1 million gallons of greywater (from showers and sinks), more than 130 gallons of dangerous waste, up to eight tons of solid waste, and 25,000 gallons of water polluted with oil.
Do cruise ships dump their waste in the ocean?
U.S. law allows cruise ships to dump raw sewage in the ocean once a ship is more than three miles off U.S. shores. Ships can dump treated sewage anywhere in the ocean except in Alaskan waters, where companies must comply with higher state standards.
Cruise ship dumping sewage
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5 Dirty Cruise Holiday Secrets: Lacking Responsibility
In the last ten years, the cruise industry spent more than $31 million lobbying the American government. This led to avoid federal taxes and environmental regulations. Several legislators tried to get Congress to adopt the Clean Cruise Ship Act, prohibiting dumping waste near the U.S. coast.
Before you go!
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