In July, the Foreign Office Minister Mr Bellingham said limited military resources meant it was not possible to free up Royal Marines for a shipprotection role.
The agreement between Lake Michigan Carferry, which operates the S.S. Badger, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would require the ship to retain its coal ash during trips across the lake and dispose of it on land.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, Coast Guard members and a Carnival team boarded the ship before it arrived in port to help speed efforts to get passengers off as quickly as possible, he said.
The Pentagon says a Greek ship called the Orient Queen has been contracted to begin evacuating other Americans, under the protection of a U.S. warship.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, Coast Guard members and a Carnival team were expected to board the ship before it arrived in port to help speed efforts to get passengers off as quickly as possible, he said.