Chapter 25
The Impact of Port Operations on Air
Quality in Piraeus and the Surrounding
Urban Areas
Nicolas Moussiopoulos, George Tsegas and Eleftherios Chourdakis
Abstract The dominant influence of shipping emissions on air quality of port cities
and their surrounding urban areas has been demonstrated in a number of case studies,
based on both assessment of monitoring data and the application of modelling tools.
In the present work, chemical dispersion calculations are used for assessing the
impact of marine traffic on air quality of Piraeus, Greece, and the neighbouring areas
of the Athens urban agglomeration. A comprehensive marine emissions inventory is
compiled using a bottom-up methodology on the basis of AIS traffic data, as well as
activity and source parameter data obtained from other national databases, covering
both merchant and passenger traffic in the area. A set of dispersion calculations
are performed using the MEMO/MARS-aero chemical dispersion model for the
Attica region, revealing the dominating contribution of the port area on the pollutant
levels over the southern part of the city of Piraeus. Assessment of a hypothetical
scenario, involving the implementation of cold ironing for ships at berth, indicates
that emissions in the hoteling phase are significantly reduced, resulting to a notable
reduction of concentrations in the port and the surrounding areas.
25.1 Introduction
This work aims at investigating the air quality impact of shipping activities in the
Piraeus Port. In order to achieve this objective, marine traffic emissions near and
in the port of Piraeus were calculated for the year 2015. The MEMO/MARS-aero
dispersion model was then applied, in order to simulate the dispersion and chemical
transformation of pollutants over the city of Piraeus and the Greater Athens Area
(GAA). Two emissions scenarios were studied, corresponding to the present situation
and a future application of mitigation technologies for ships at berth.
N. Moussiopoulos (B) · G. Tsegas · E. Chourdakis
Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
e-mail: moussio@eng.auth.gr
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
C. Mensink et al. (eds.), Air Pollution Modeling and its Application XXVI,
Springer Proceedings in Complexity,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22055-6_25
159
The Impact of Port Operations on Air
Quality in Piraeus and the Surrounding
Urban Areas
Nicolas Moussiopoulos, George Tsegas and Eleftherios Chourdakis
Abstract The dominant influence of shipping emissions on air quality of port cities
and their surrounding urban areas has been demonstrated in a number of case studies,
based on both assessment of monitoring data and the application of modelling tools.
In the present work, chemical dispersion calculations are used for assessing the
impact of marine traffic on air quality of Piraeus, Greece, and the neighbouring areas
of the Athens urban agglomeration. A comprehensive marine emissions inventory is
compiled using a bottom-up methodology on the basis of AIS traffic data, as well as
activity and source parameter data obtained from other national databases, covering
both merchant and passenger traffic in the area. A set of dispersion calculations
are performed using the MEMO/MARS-aero chemical dispersion model for the
Attica region, revealing the dominating contribution of the port area on the pollutant
levels over the southern part of the city of Piraeus. Assessment of a hypothetical
scenario, involving the implementation of cold ironing for ships at berth, indicates
that emissions in the hoteling phase are significantly reduced, resulting to a notable
reduction of concentrations in the port and the surrounding areas.
25.1 Introduction
This work aims at investigating the air quality impact of shipping activities in the
Piraeus Port. In order to achieve this objective, marine traffic emissions near and
in the port of Piraeus were calculated for the year 2015. The MEMO/MARS-aero
dispersion model was then applied, in order to simulate the dispersion and chemical
transformation of pollutants over the city of Piraeus and the Greater Athens Area
(GAA). Two emissions scenarios were studied, corresponding to the present situation
and a future application of mitigation technologies for ships at berth.
N. Moussiopoulos (B) · G. Tsegas · E. Chourdakis
Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
e-mail: moussio@eng.auth.gr
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
C. Mensink et al. (eds.), Air Pollution Modeling and its Application XXVI,
Springer Proceedings in Complexity,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22055-6_25
159