New minefield of cruise rules

Perhaps never before have cruise lines seen such scrutiny from US and international authorities in what some industry officials are calling a regulatory “minefield,” while others term it the biggest threat to the future of the business.
 

The latest example: President Obama signed into law a bill requiring the industry to be more transparent in reporting onboard crime as well as other security features.
 

The problem for the industry is that their ships pass through many destinations with varying rules.
 

“Different communities sometimes post their own rules, and to an operator, that kind of drives you crazy,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival Cruise Lines CEO. "It does make it more difficult. Sometimes we have to carry two different grades of fuel onboard to comply with these rules."
 

The Cruise Line International (CLIA) has lobbied for more consistent rules, but Michael Crye, CLIA’s executive vice president for technical and regulatory affairs, said that has not always been effective.
 

"From a shipping perspective, it’s always been and always will be that we’d like to harmonize the requirements placed on an industry, so that you don’t have this thing taking effect in this location and that thing in that location," he said.
 

Meanwhile, environmental groups and victims associations are applauding the increased jurisdiction. Politicians behind the legislation say that it makes the world cleaner and safer.
 

"The cruise industry’s platform has never been as high, as wide and as global as it is today," said Rod McLeod, a former cruise line executive. "Over the past 25 years, the industry has shifted from relative anonymity to being a high-profile and profitable mainstream vacation option.”
 

Environmental concerns are fueling much of the new rules.
 

"There is a very significant focus on environmental issues,” Crye said. "They are not specifically targeted to cruise or passenger ships, but they are sweeping requirements."
 

This increased visibility has upped the industry’s target profile among every level of government.
 

To the cruise industry, the aggregate of so many new laws and rules makes the current regulatory environment a "minefield," Tom Strang, vice president of policy and regulation for Carnival Corp., said earlier this year.
 

He called it the single biggest threat to today’s cruise industry.
 

Crye agreed that maritime air emissions are a particular target right now. He added that growing environmental concerns are causing the US and international groups to look harder at the shipping industry in general.
 

By David Wilkening