A Disney cruise ship which stopped in Scotland on one of its regular routes has been named the most polluting liner in Europe. An investigation by consumer watchdog Which? analysed the EU’s 2023 monitoring, reporting and verification data to calculate which cruise lines were most polluting on average, based on average ship emissions per nautical miles travelled. The 2,500-person capacity Disney Dream, which last year docked in Greenock for the first time on a new route for the Disney cruise brand, pumped out average Co2 emissions of almost one and half tonnes per nautical mile, putting it at the top of the table.
Rather than analysing total emissions – which would simply highlight the cruise lines with the most ships - analysing emissions per distance travelled spotlights the cruise companies operating the worst polluting vessels. Norwegian had 10 ships in European waters and was the second-worst polluter based on average emissions per ship, with each vessel emitting an average of 1.4 tonnes (1413 kg) of Co2 per nautical mile.
The company is also home to the most polluting cruise ship in Europe, according to figures; the 4,100 capacity Norwegian Epic spewed two tonnes of CO2 for every nautical mile travelled. In total, this single ship was responsible for 95,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2023 - as much as a town with around 20,000 residents. Other cruise lines with high emissions included Princess Cruises with average emissions of 1253 kg per nautical mile, closely follo.