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Some of the most telling accounts come from staff aboard cruise 

 vessels. In almost all of the reports we have received from crew, 

 they indicate that the orders to dump come from the officers and 

 that the captain is fully aware of the practice. This is also borne 

 out by the passengers who report that complaints lodged with the 

 captain and other officers appear to fall on deaf ears. One passen- 

 ger even related a story that the captain threatened her with, 

 "You had better watch your step," after he had discovered that she 

 had taken photographs of the ship's crew dumping plastics at sea. 



CMC has initiated a campaign to educate potential cruise passen- 

 gers and enlist their help to becoming the Coast Guard's eyes and 

 ears on the water. While on board, we encourage passengers to in- 

 vestigate the disposal habits of the ship and document any dump- 

 ing activity they may witness. We encourage them to report any 

 illegal activity to the Coast Guard and provide them with the nec- 

 essary report forms. 



We are also working very closely with the media to get the word 

 out about illegal cruise line dumping. As a result, an increasing 

 number of individuals are calling to report dumping incidents they 

 themselves have seen as passengers. After the "I Witness Video" 

 segment aired on national television, the producers of the show re- 

 ceived 18 calls from passengers who had seen a similar event. 



It is not possible for the Coast Guard with its limited resources to 

 witness and take enforcement action against all vessels illegally 

 disposing of trash overboard. CMC feels that the most effective way 

 to police the cruise industry is to directly involve passengers and 

 crew in monitoring their activities. The recent case involving Prin- 

 cess Cruise Line is a perfect example of how effective citizens can 

 be. The two witnesses who videotaped the event and the four addi- 

 tional witnesses who later came forward were instrumental in 

 helping the Coast Guard and other Federal law enforcers build a 

 criminal case against Princess Cruise Line. Without their coopera- 

 tion, a conviction would never have been possible. 



To facilitate citizen reporting, CMC makes the following recom- 

 mendations: We encourage the Coast Guard to set up a toll-free 

 MARPOL V hotline to provide an effective avenue for citizen re- 

 ports. We recommend that written information on MARPOL V reg- 

 ulations and the Coast Guard's toll-free hotline be provided to 

 every cruise passenger who purchases a ticket within the United 

 States. 



We recommend that every commercial passenger vessel leaving a 

 U.S. port incorporate information on MARPOL V in the required 

 safety briefing that is given to passengers before embarkation. We 

 recommend the establishment of a whistle-blower program by the 

 cruise industry to provide crew members with a viable avenue for 

 reporting violations. 



CMC applauds the Coast Guard's recent initiatives to step up en- 

 forcement action against violators of MARPOL V. These actions 

 send a strong message to any vessel traveling within our waters. 

 The U.S. is serious about enforcing its pollution laws. CMC fully 

 supports the Coast Guard and other Federal agencies and urge 

 them to continue to effect measures to further strengthen enforce- 

 ment capabilities. 



