b'LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENTAT THE HELM Working to Reduce the Use of PlasticsPATRICK MURPHY // PRESIDENTT his month, Foghorn is focused on environmentaleach year. Thats the equivalent of dumping one garbage issues.PerfecttimingsincewecelebratedEarthtruck full of plastic into the ocean every minute. If nothing Day on April 22. The passenger vessel industryis done, this will increase to two garbage trucks a minute by certainly has an impact on the environment we operate2030 and four per minute by 2050.within. Balancing sightseeing, excursion, and ferry oper-ationswithenvironmentalstewardshipisessentialforaMuchplasticismadefrompetroleum,anditdoesnot sustainable future on our waterways. This year the glob- breakdowneasily.AccordingtotheUnitedNations, al theme for Earth Day 2024 is planet vs. plastics. Theplastic waste can take anywhere from 20 to 500 years to goal is to achieve a 60 percentdecompose,andeventhen,it reductioninplasticproduc- never fully disappears it just gets tionby2040andultimatelyAccording to the Unitedsmaller and smaller. Microplas-buildaplastic-freefutureforNations Environmentalticshavebeenfoundinevery generations to come. Reducingcorneroftheglobe,fromthe plastic usage is crucial for theProgram, over 11 millionpeakofMountEveresttothe health of our planet. Here aretons of plastic are dumpedtrough of the Mariana Trench. some statistics centered aroundinto our oceans each year. single use plastic. So, as a vessel operator how can Thats the equivalent ofyou do your part in being a good Approximately 50 billion plas- dumping one garbage trucksteward of the planet? There are ticwaterbottlesweresoldinmanyalternativestosingle-use the United States last year, thatfull of plastic into the oceanplasticproductsoranyplastic number is up from 30 billionevery minute. If nothingproducts. From reusable bags to in2005.Only23percentofstainlesssteeltravelmugs,giv-water bottles were recycled lastis done, this will increaseing up plastic can be as simple as year.Over60millionplasticto two garbage trucks aa single choice. However, if you bottles are thrown away in theminute by 2030 and foursell plastic water bottles on your UnitedStateseveryday.Onvessels,thenyoushouldalso average,Americansuse1.6per minute by 2050. provideameansforrecycling plasticdrinkingstrawseverythe empty bottles. day. Drinking straws may not seem like a lot of plastic but they add up quickly. Also,The Passenger Vessel Association can help as it has been plastic straws tend to float and are often mistaken for foodoffering its members the information they need to succeed by marine life. The same can be said for plastic bags whichthrough the Green WATERS program. It is a voluntary can look like jellyfish and are too often consumed by tur- program and is intended to assist passenger vessel operators tles. These plastics can carry pathogens or create chokinginrunningcleaner,greenerbusinessoperationswithout hazards for marine life. causing financial or operational strain. Because every ves-sel operation is different, this program, which continues According to the United Nations Environmental Program,to evolve over time, is expected to be used as a guide and over 11 million tons of plastic are dumped into our oceansoperators should use those practices that make sense for Continued on page 49FOGHORN 4'