October 2022

 

Raising awareness on issues such as pollution prevention, waste management and energy conservation is vital in all areas of our operations and for everyone on board. There’s a specific person on board who takes care of this important task, the Environmental Compliance Officer (ECO), who reports into our Environmental Operations & Compliance Department in Uxbridge, UK.

 

One of the key responsibilities of the ECO is to help newly embarked crew familiarise with the environmental policies and requirements of our ships through role-specific induction trainings.

 

Ensuring each ship is fully compliant with environmental regulations is another important part of the role. The ECO is responsible for onboard waste management and disposal according to international, and local regulations and company policies, as well as for supervising and training the crew that handle waste as part of their responsibilities. There are seven waste categories on board – plastics, food waste domestic waste (glass, aluminum, paper/cardboard, metal, crockery…), cooking oil, incinerator waste, operational waste and e-waste. With the exception of food waste, which are processed with special equipment, no waste is permitted to be discharged into the sea, and employees who do so risk disciplinary action, dismissal or even criminal prosecution. Waste is collected and separated by trained waste handling crew members and then compacted, fragmented, or incinerated, using specific equipment, with residual waste carefully delivered to dedicated approved port reception facilities.

 

MSC Cruises is constantly innovating and assessing new technologies to further improve our waste management and do our part in contributing to the transition towards a truly circular economy.