The ban goes into effect Aug. 1, 2011, and will mostly impact large cruise ships that carry more than 500 passengers and briefly pass through Antarctica waters, without disembarking passengers, while traveling from South America. Designed to minimize the potential for accidents involving heavy fuel oils, the ban will force larger ships to deplete any banned fuel onboard before traveling into the region.
As a result, it is expected that a number of these ships will alter their itineraries to avoid the area, which will result in a projected decline in tourism from a current annual estimate of 35,000 visitors for the 2010-11 season to roughly 27,000 the following season. “Our mission remains the advocacy of responsible tourism operations geared toward the safety of human life and the protection and preservation of the Antarctic environment,” said Steve Wellmeier, executive director of IATTO. “As a result, our members are receptive to those changes that help accomplish these objectives.”
Unaffected will be the majority of smaller, expedition-type cruise vessels -- those carrying 60 to 500 passengers -- which in recent years have relied on lighter distillate fuels such as marine gas oil and marine diesel oil. These fuels are not included in the ban.
IAATO is a member organization founded in 1991 to advocate, promote and practice safe and environmentally responsible private-sector travel to the Antarctic. IAATO currently has 110 members. IAATO members work together to develop, adopt and implement operational standards that mitigate potential environmental impacts. For more information, visit www.iaato.org.
No comments:
Post a Comment