Costa Cruises to participate in International Earth Day

Costa Cruises is doing its bit for environmental protection and conservation, by participating in “International Earth Day” on April 22, through the promotion SEED (Steiner Evergreen Earth Drive) launched by Steiner Leisure, Costa’s partner in the management of its shipboard spas.

For every passenger who experiences a treatment at one of the wellness centers on board the 12 Costa ships, Steiner Leisure will plant a tree (donation of $1) in support of the Arbor Day Foundation, which is one of the world’s largest tree-planting organizations. Thanks to the spas on Costa’s ships and all Steiner’s wellness centers worldwide, the SEED promotion hopes to achieve the noble aim of planting a total of 10,000 trees.

The trees planted through this effort will provide numerous environmental benefits over their lifetimes. They will help clean rivers, lakes and streams as well as the air we breathe and provide food and habitat for wildlife.

Steiner Leisure, one of the largest global providers of spa services, has been a partner of Costa Cruises for 20 years. In 2006 the synergy between the two companies led to the creation of Samsara Spa - over 6000 square meters including cabins and suites with direct spa access as well as a dedicated restaurant; Samsara is currently operating on the Costa Serena and Costa Concordia, and from spring 2009, also on board the two new flagships Costa Luminosa and Costa Pacifica.

The SEED initiative is further testimony to Costa Cruises’ commitment to the environment. In 2005 Costa Cruises received the “Green Star” across the fleet from RINA (the Italian Shipping Register); this prestigious notation certifies that all Costa’s vessels comply with environmental standards for the prevention of pollution of the marine environment and is actually stricter than the prevailing provisions of the international MARPOL Convention.

The commitment to safeguarding the environment and to corporate social responsibility in general is reflected in particular in the company’s Sustainability Report, a purely voluntary form of reporting designed to provide comprehensive and transparent information on the effects of corporate activity on the environment and the community. Among the results documented in the most recent edition of the Report, concerning performance in 2006, is a 10% reduction in the volume of garbage generated per person and the introduction of a new system of disposal of waste other than food waste, with segregated streams and subsequent recycling.

Costa Cruises’ Sustainability Report has its roots in the application of the “BEST 4”, an integrated management system that encompasses four types of voluntary certification of corporate compliance with the highest standards in the areas of quality (UNI EN ISO 9001, issued in 2000), environment (UNI EN ISO 14001, 2004), safety (OHSAS 18001, 1999) and social accountability (SA 8000, 2001), guaranteeing the measurement of company performance and continuous improvement.

Confirming its role as a major player in the field of environmental compliance, Costa has also entered an agreement with CIAL – the National Consortium for the Recovery and Recycling of  Aluminum – for the separate disposal and recycling of aluminum packaging on board its ships, a first for Italian shipping. Last but not least, in 2005 Costa Cruises launched a project of collaboration with the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission for monitoring climate change in the Mediterranean.

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