15 August 2022
Princess Cruises’ Island Princess arrived for the first time at the Port of Dover last week, months after the ship helped to bring the port’s stand from Seatrade Cruise Global, Miami back to the UK to be recycled into furniture for schools.
Alongside the customary plaque exchange festivities, the Port of Dover’s head of cruise Sonia Limbrick and CCO Christian Pryce gifted a table and a set of four chairs to the vessel for use in the Camp Discovery Kids Centre onboard the ship. Each chair has a sticker on the back that tells the story of the plastic being retrieved from the ocean, recycled into an exhibition stand and ultimately becoming several table and chair sets.
Said Limbrick, ‘We are thrilled to be able to gift a set of the recycled table and chairs to the Island Princess as a thank you for their help and a valuable opportunity for children on board to learn about ocean plastic and the importance of recycling.’
Speaking on behalf of the cruise line, Capt. Lorentzen who is at the helm of the ship, responded, ‘I am grateful to the Port of Dover for their warm welcome this morning and pleased to receive this plaque marking our inaugural call to the port.
In June, we were delighted to assist with the return of the port’s sustainable Seatrade stand, ensuring that it was able to journey back to the UK contributing zero additional emissions.
‘We are therefore overjoyed to receive one of the recycled table and chair sets to use in our Camp Discovery Kids Centre and look forward to using them to teach our younger guests the importance of protecting our seas.’
The remaining sets are due to be donated to schools local to Dover.
‘It’s always a pleasure to host Princess Cruises and we hope that Dover’s offering – including strong transport links, beautiful surroundings and our sustainable credentials – will mean this is the first of many calls by the Island Princess to the port.’ said Limbrick.
The Port of Dover’s 2019 stand at Seatrade Global in Miami – made entirely from recycled plastic – was transferred from Port Everglades to the UK by Island Princess, to be recycled again into chairs for local schools.
The stand’s frame, walls and flooring plus furniture and soft furnishings were all made from waste plastic collected from the world’s oceans and beaches.
Solent Stevedores was responsible for its unloading.
At Dover port, sustainability continued to be a core focus at this year’s Seatrade Cruise Global. All travel emissions were offset, no single-use plastic was used and all elements of the stand were either reused or recycled.
The mural from the port’s 2022 stand will be brought back to Dover’s cruise terminal where it will be displayed for passengers to see for years to come.