The working group Cruise 2030 has started operating on finding ways to help shaping the cruise industry of the future. The kick-off meeting took place in Venice, on October 18, aiming to establish a common platform of strategies to support the development of the cruise industry sustainably, in order to match the needs of the industry with the demands of the cities and territories.
Participants agreed upon the importance of the economical and occupational aspects of the cruise industry, but they concluded that the need to intervene in a coordinated way to reduce or eliminate the impacts and burdens of the cruise industry is fundamental.
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During the meeting, each port had the opportunity to pinpoint the main issues faced, and how these are addressed. In order to achieve a better understanding, the Port of Venice conducted a survey and an assessment to specify the specific needs and actions necessary for each port.
Until the next meeting, which will take place in Mallorca, the participants will work towards the drafting of a common action plan to prepare the next meeting with a statement to approve collectively and adopt as a working document.
In addition to these agreements, other topics that were discussed included the following:
- All ports confirm their commitment on tackling the environmental aspects, especially on reducing emissions, with specific solutions being designed in the different ports;
- There is the need to find a workable and feasible compromise between the sizes of the vessel and the geographical and physical characteristics of the European ports, many of them are in fact significantly different from the ports of the rest of the world;
- The need to improve the organisational aspect of the whole chain, in order to minimise the impact of congestions and of the negative effects on the urban mobility and the quality of life in each destination;
- The need to assess in a scientific, fact-based, figure-based, manner the impacts and implications of the cruise industry on ports and their surrounding areas;
- In doing so, there is the need to build a social, environmental and economic acceptability towards the industry from cities, regions, citizens.
