Environmental Initiatives - Royal Caribbean International

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Download our onboard Waste Stream Operational Controls chart.

Download an overview of Royal Caribbean's Advanced Wastewater Purification Systems.

You can download these PDF files of our latest environmental information and view them using Adobe® Acrobat 5.0 or higher. If you do not have Adobe^® Acrobat, download it now.

Navigators on the world's oceans, we at Royal Caribbean International know we have a special responsibility to protect our environment. The sustainability of our planet is dependent on cleaner seas and purer air. It is central to our guests' holiday experience, and is at the core of our commitment to continually improve our environmental practices and stewardship.

Royal Caribbean has made steady progress in its environmental programme over its 40-year history. Several years ago, we embarked on an ambitious plan across our fleet and office locations to substantially reduce our impact on the environment. Today, many of these initiatives are well under way and are being used on Independence of the Seas.

Click the topics below to learn more about the environmental enhancements we've made across our fleet including the Independence of the Seas.

Lighting
High-Efficiency Appliances
Hull Coatings
Window Tinting
Propulsion and Hull Design
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning
Operational Conservation Measures
Fresh Water Consumption
Advanced Wastewater Purification

Lighting
We have replaced halogen and incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent lights throughout our fleet. Fluorescent bulbs require 80% less energy and generate 50% less heat than the old bulbs. The result is of double benefit: not only do we use less energy, but the cooler bulbs also save on air conditioning needs.

Fluorescent bulbs also last much longer than halogen and incandescent bulbs, which allows us to reduce the number of bulbs we dispose of and improve our solid-waste environmental footprint.

We are also in the process of upgrading our lighting systems to match guest-usage patterns in key areas of the ship.
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High-Efficiency Appliances
We have installed high-efficiency appliances throughout the ship in order to minimise their impact on climate change. Every type of appliance on board our ships is being evaluated for efficiency, including: TVs, coffee makers, ovens and dishwashers.

One outstanding example is our newest icemakers, which use 65% less water than previous machines.
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Hull Coatings
We are working with paint manufacturers, to develop innovative and environmentally safe coatings that increase the smoothness of our ship's hull. By creating a smoother hull, we can reduce the amount of energy needed to travel through water.

We estimate that creating these smoother hull coatings will save as much as 5% of our fuel usage for propulsion.
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Window Tinting
We have applied window tinting designed for the marine environment throughout our fleet, which also reduces the amount of solar-heat transfer and saves on air conditioning.

Our window tinting allows natural light to enter the ship, while filtering 99.9% of UV rays. This feature also protects our interiors and furnishings from sun damage and helps cut back on future waste.
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Propulsion and Hull Design
We have been working with engine and propeller manufacturers to develop a new approach to hull shapes and propulsion systems, which has resulted in significant energy savings.

By bringing together the optimal hull shape with advanced propeller systems, we have maximised our efficiency. We estimate an energy saving of about 8% compared to traditional propeller-and-rudder set-ups.
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Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning
The Independence of the Seas is equipped with the latest and most efficient air conditioning equipment available. Coupled with improvements in system design and automation, this has resulted in an efficiency increase of approximately 10% over ships built as recently as five years ago.

Our crew members are diligent in helping to reduce air-conditioning energy waste by keeping thermostats to a neutral position when staterooms are not in use and by ensuring balcony doors are closed.
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Operational Conservation Measures
Our environmental policies guide both our shipboard and shoreside employees in beneficial environmental practices. Our crew members are an integral part of our energy-conservation efforts.

Staff are encouraged to turn off lights and appliances in guest and crew areas when not needed, adjust temperature thermostats to comfortable levels when no one is present, and conserve energy through fresh-water saving initiatives.

Our guests are also encouraged to participate in saving energy and reducing air emissions by turning off the water while brushing their teeth or shaving, turning off the lights and TV when they leave their room, and using towels and bed linens for more than one day at a time.
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Fresh Water Consumption
Producing fresh drinking water can greatly increase energy usage on board a ship. As a result, we ask crew members and guests to help us conserve water whenever possible.

We have installed water-reduction technology and appliances throughout our fleet to reduce the use of water-producing equipment that consumes fuel or electricity. These features include sink aerators, showerheads, reduced-flow dishwashers and low-consumption laundry equipment.
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Advanced Wastewater Purification
We have installed Advanced Wastewater Purification (AWP) equipment on Independence of the Seas, and we will equip all existing and new ships with this cutting-edge technology.

This technologically advanced system cleans the wastewater generated on board our ships and creates clean water that exceeds ship wastewater discharge standards throughout the world.

To learn more about our progress on this initiative, please download an overview of Royal Caribbean's Advanced Wastewater Purification Systems.

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