Cruise line fined $100,000 for alleged dumping in Puget Sound

Celebrity Cruises faces a $100,000 fine for allegedly allowing one of its ships to dump more than half a million gallons of untreated wastewater into Puget Sound last year.

The state Department of Ecology cited the Florida-based cruise ship company, which runs cruises out of Seattle, after inspectors found documents that recorded the dumping. Those records contradicted an earlier letter the company sent to the state claiming its ships hadn't flushed any wastewater into Washington waters during the 2005 cruise year, according to Ecology.

The dumping from the ship Mercury happened 10 times over nine days in September and October 2005, according to the state. The water came mostly from showers, sinks and clothes washers, with some also flushed from toilets.

Company officials responded that they accept responsibility for the dumping and have installed equipment to clean wastewater.

Warren Cornwall: 206-464-2311 or cornwall@seattletimes.com