The world’s largest cruise group, Carnival Corporation, have identified 140 different ways of saving fuel. While not focusing on actually being green, a side-effect may be fewer emissions at least.

The company is looking at such things as cutting the speed of cruise ships to using special paint to help vessels travel through the water more efficiently.

Meanwhile Holland America Line has presented a number of possible energy-saving options while showcasing new ship Eurodam to the UK trade in Southampton. These include harnessing waste heat, developing new software to automatically adjust the trim of ships to ensure they operate most effectively, reducing speed through better itinerary planning to improve fuel consumption and even turning off lights.

Turning off lights! What a novel idea. Perhaps they should speak to the greener hotels around the world who are already doing such things and may be able to give a few more ideas?

Come on cruiseliners, Green Is In!

Stray Tours is using waste oil because they wanted to do something to make their Auckland city bus “more environmentally friendly to keep it in tune with the rest of our fleet and company values.”

There is no problem getting the waste oil for free. “The fish and chips shops are very willing to give us their waste oil as at the moment they have to pay (approx $10 a barrel) for it to be taken away.”

Unfortunately there are no plans to use the good oil on their other buses and routes: 1) because it would be more difficult getting a supply of waste oil around the whole country – “our current oil bus just runs around Auckland city so it’s easy to maintain one set supply”; and 2) “They are all new and relatively efficient anyway.”

More: www.straytravel.com

The hotels use an estimated 4,000 eggs each day, so that a lot of happier and healthier chooks.

Apparently there is a kind of ‘free the chooks’ movement on, driven by Whole Foods who have ‘egged’ on large companies like Google, Burger King, Omni Hotels and Wolfgang Puck to stop using caged eggs.

Egg-cellent! Let us egg on the management at our next hotel to use freed eggs!

In fact, let the world follow. Not that SA is the only place in the world to ban these bags: San Francisco and China are two that come to mind.

Imagine if all of Australia banned plastic bags: we would see five billion plastic bags less in our landscapes and oceans. The birds, whales, seals and turtles out there who are hurt and choked by such items would be much happier as well. 

Travelers can do their bit by refusing plastic bags when offered at shops anywhere. Take along the backpack or material bag and lets reuse bags not throw them away to kill and maim our wildlife and pollute our environments.

Kate is out to prove that you can choose to travel lightly: 

“I’ve done some things that most people only dream of, from sailing across the Equator with a glass of fake champagne, to showering in a rain storm and barbecuing steaks off the back of the yacht while drifting through the Doldrums. I’ve seen more flying fish and dolphins than you can shake a stick at (this was hindered only by the fact that I didn’t have a stick to hand), but most importantly, I survived. All this excitement…”

A website is following Kate on her journey and may just inspire you to set off on your own low carbon adventure. Visit Loco2travel.com

“I wanted to make a guidebook to share the stories of great people who are, quite simply, trying to make a difference,” says Mack. “They are striving to make a living out of Irish tourism, but taking responsibility for the impact it might have locally.”

The slow travel aspect encourages more use of trains, buses, boats, bikes and our very own legs rather than driving cars and flying. Visit Ecoescape.org

The only reason I could do this was due to a determined group of protestors and much of the Australian population who, 25 years ago, saved this river from damming.
 
The 25th anniversary of the High Court decision which saved the Franklin River is on at the Federation Ballroom of Hobart’s Grand Chancellor Hotel.
 
Among the people attending tomorrow are Senator Bob Brown, former Prime Minister Bob Hawke,  David Bellamy, Senator Peg Putt, entrepreneur Dick Smith, ABC TV’s Peter Thompson, Premier David Bartlett and actress Lorraine Bayly.

Songsters will include Lisa Yeates, Ian Paulin and (Goanna’s) Shane Howard who is flying in from Ireland to sing the campaign anthem ‘Let the Franklin Flow’ while author Richard Flanagan will reflect on the Franklin victory. Further details are at www.franklin25th.com

Senator Brown: “In an age of much greater environmental alarm, the Franklin campaign continues to send out shock waves of optimism around the world. Against huge odds, the wild river was saved because it galvanized national public opinion. Latest polls show the environment is easily the biggest issue for the future on people’s minds.”

The nation is also taking the greening of its industries seriously and one bus tour company has converted its Auckland tour bus to run on waste cooking oil.

I love it!

The Stray ‘hop-on-hop-off’ bus network caters for the backpacker market. The oil means that the emissions are zero and running costs are very low. www.straytravel.com

Gene Coutu, regional vice president, Market Operations for Marriott’s Eastern Region said: “Our hotel guests are very aware of hotels’ impact on the planet; more and more, they are making hotel choices based upon the company’s commitment to environmental practices. The New York Marriott Downtown’s trigeneration technology is a great example of how committed we are.”

The New York Marriott Downtown is located at 85 West Street in Lower Manhattan. The trigeneration installation comes on the heels of the completion of hotel renovations that include all new guestrooms, brand new meeting space, and a new concierge lounge overlooking New York City Harbor, with additional guest elevator modernization slated for completion by November 2008.

Marriot.com

Budget carrier Easyjet is bringing in snazzy new engines for its fleet of A319’s.

CEO Andy Harrison said: “There is no doubt that climate change is a real and pressing danger which should be a concern for us all and that the biggest benefits are to be gained from environmentally-sensitive companies developing and operating the big leaps forward in technology that will enable our industry to achieve the green growth that is expected of us.”

The new engines will reduce mono-nitrogen oxides (NOx) by 25%. This means less C02 emissions and will also lower their fuel consumption and maintenance costs.

The European Commission is developing a NOx emission legislation proposal that will help operators lower their environmental impact whilst also lowering costs.