Agents should not shy away from explaining to guests the sustainability and environmental measures ongoing in the river cruise sector, according to experts at the 2019 CLIA river cruise conference.

Avalon Waterways CEO Giles Hawke told delegates that while projects to cut emissions and remove single-use plastics might not be the determining factor in clinching a sale, clients “do care about it”.

“It’s incumbent on us as an industry to give agents the information [about sustainability measures] and soundbites they can use,” he said. “Once we provide the information, agents should be using it.”

“I look at my children and those in their 20s – they care about this. Our business won’t exist unless we do something  – people will vote with their feet. I believe a lot of guests expect it to be happening.”

Hawke added that river operators should not look at sustainability as a competitive field but should instead learn what works well and share knowledge.

Current projects underway include A-Rosa’s e-motion ship, which will use battery power, Uniworld’s pledge to cut all single-use plastics across the fleet, and similar projects at Avalon Waterways and other lines.

Speaking about Uniworld’s work, the line’s operations managing director Ben Wirz said: “We have three elements – remove, replace, recycle. Can we remove an item without an impact on guests? One example is plastic straws. We’ve noticed that no guest has complained [about removing straws].

“If it can’t be removed, we look at replacing the item. The third question is, can we reduce the use or recycle? For example, refillable shower and soap pumps, to cut the number of shampoo bottles being thrown away.

“One of our challenges is that it can be difficult to find alternatives for some products – such as cling film or rubbish bags.”