Environmental impacts of a sailing cruise voyage have not yet been assessed from a lifecycle perspective. Thus far, only conventional fuel-based cruise holidays are related to various environmental impacts and are known as an energy intensive form of tourism. International regulations are increasingly stringent on direct pollution and energy-use related impacts but exclude upstream and downstream externalities in sustainability targets for cruise tourism. Whether sailing cruise tourism can form a truly low-impact alternative to conventional (i.e. fuel-based) cruise tourism however, depends on a myriad of lifecycle interactions. Consequently, a manageable lifecycle approach is needed for estimating the distribution of direct and indirect impacts of a sailing cruise voyage. Furthermore, when sailing cruise operators wish to mitigate their environmental impacts, focal points of impact hotspots and alternatives need to be determined.
In this design-oriented research report the Seafaring Applied Impact Ladder (SAIL) is introduced. This framework makes use of fast track-LCA methodology for determining systemwide impact distribution and mitigation pathways for major impact contributors in sailing cruise lifecycle systems. By applying the SAIL to a case study sailing cruise voyage on board the Clipper Stad Amsterdam (CSA), insights in impact distribution and feasible impact reduction emerge.
The case study found that a passengers’ fuel related carbon footprint is greater for conventional cruises than for a sailing cruise on board the CSA. In the SAILs systemwide assessment however, fuel-related impacts remain the major culprit for all three included indicators. Food consumption and crew flights generate a considerable additional share of systemwide impacts. For fuel combustion and food consumption, technological substitution can result in feasible impact reduction, which is quantified in the fourth step of the case study.
The SAIL proves itself a useful and improvement focused approach for impact assessment in sailing cruise lifecycle systems. The presented procedures form a straightforward approach from which practical inferences for impact reduction follow. Further application of the framework in case studies will contribute to sustainable development in (sailing) cruises and broadens the scientific domain of impact assessment.