Superyacht industry leaders pledge to reduce carbon footprint

15 July 2019 • Written by Miranda Blazeby

Nine superyacht industry leaders have pledged to reduce their carbon footprint in support of the non-profit foundation Water Revolution.

The first confirmed “anchor partners” behind the sustainability initiative comprise German yards Abeking & Rasmussen and Lürssen, Dutch builders Feadship, Heesen, Amels and Damen and Italian yard Benetti. Refit yards MB92 and Rybovich, alongside yacht coatings company Alexseal, have also pledged their support.

The agreement means the companies have made a commitment to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and make financial contributions to help secure a sustainable future for the superyacht industry.

Abeking & Rasmussen is one of the nine companies that have pledged their support for the sustainability initiative

“This leadership is exactly what the superyacht industry urgently needs to accelerate sustainability efforts,” said Water Revolution Foundation executive director Robert van Tol.

“Reducing our footprint is a collective challenge and requires real cooperation. I’d like to thank our first anchor partners for sharing this vision, making it possible to start this ambitious programme and call on other companies to join this revolution too.”

The Water Revolution Foundation is currently developing an assessment tool to measure the impact of design and build choices as well as the carbon footprint of existing yachts and effectiveness of technical solutions.

More generally, the foundation is promoting new technology, creating an industry sustainability agenda and investing in ocean conversation.

Established in 2018, the foundation has its roots in the superyacht industry and is led by a board of key figures, including Feadship’s Henk de Vries, designer Philippe Briand and Peter Lürssen.

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