Atmospheric emissions from maritime activities in Altamira, Gulf of Mexico

Abstract Altamira is one of the most important Mexican ports in the Gulf of Mexico, located in an important industrial and petrochemical, which is a high pollutant emission area. In this study, the atmospheric emissions generated by shipping activity in the port of Altamira were estimated, specifically those caused by engine combustion. Official data from the port of Altamira were used, covering the period from 2017 to 2022. The Bottom-Up approach was applied considering the maneuvering and hotelling phases of the ships. The calculated emissions covered various substances, including criteria pollutants, toxics, persistent organic pollutants, and greenhouse gases. Maneuvering and hotelling times were considered individually for each vessel to obtain a more accurate representation of emissions. Emissions were found to be directly influenced by several factors, including vessel operating times, number of recorded arrivals, and engine power. Emissions during the study period were higher in 2022 due to increased length of stay and the number of ships arriving. About the categorization of emitting vessels, it was determined that container ships stood out as the main generators of pollutants. This was followed by bulk carriers, which had long dwell times during the port phase, contributing to their higher emissions. In comparison tankers had relatively lower emissions compared to the other ship types. Finally, the ARIMA forecast model was applied to predict future NMVOC, CO 2 , and SO 2 emissions.