Princes Cruise Lines has agreed to pay $20,000 in fines for dumping water from on-board swimming pools into Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in 2011.
The fine was announced by the Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday.
The EPA writes that Princess violated the Clean Water Act in May 2011 when more than 66, 000 gallons of pool water was discharged into the waters of Glacier Bay National Park.
EPA writes there was a software malfunction on the ship the Golden Princess, causing the pool dump valves to open. The malfunction allowed chlorinated water from six of the ship’s pools and spas to dump into Glacier Bay. Princess notified EPA of the discharges by phone the next day.
The EPA said the incident violated the wastewater discharge permit for large cruise ships, which prohibits the discharge of pool or spa water in national parks and refuges. The federal Clean Water Act allows the EPA to fine cruise companies for permit violations.
The Golden Princess can host more than 500 passenger and sails in Alaska during the summer season. It sails to Hawaii, the South Pacific and South America at other times of the year.
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