03 Jan Cruise Ship Accidentally Discharges Gray Water at Port Canaveral
The cruise ship Carnival Elation accidentally released 6,000 gallons of gray water into the harbor at Port Canaveral, Florida, cruise operator Carnival informed the U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday.
The discharge occurred during routine deballasting at the pier, the firm told local media.
"While Carnival Elation was offloading water from its ballast systems . . . a gray water valve was inadvertently opened, discharging treated gray water from the plumbing and shower systems for a short period. No sewage was offloaded," a Carnival spokesperson said in a statement. "[The problem] was quickly addressed and resolved by shipboard personnel, and all appropriate authorities were notified."
No cleanup is planned, and the Carnival Elation departed on schedule for her next commercial voyage.
Gray water typically contains the combined wastewater streams from the ship's sinks, showers, laundry facilities and galleys. It is not classified as sewage, but U.S. EPA testing has determined that for certain ship types, the average contaminant concentrations in gray water may exceed the levels found in untreated domestic sewage. The EPA Vessel General Permit regulatory scheme specifies that while pierside, large cruise ships "must either discharge to appropriate reception facilities, hold graywater and discharge when the vessel is underway, or treat graywater with a device to meet discharge standards."
Carnival Corporation is currently under a five-year court-supervised probation period related to oily waste discharges from ships operated by its Princess brand. In 2016, the firm pleaded guilty to seven felony charges and paid a record $40 million fine; last year, it reached a new agreement with prosecutors to pay an additional $20 million fine for alleged probation violations.
News source: http://maritime-executive.com Go to original post
