The European norms have determined an improvement of the quality of the air in the ports of the EU



The Joint Research Centre (JRC), the scientific and for research purposes technical organism of the EU commission, has carried out an investigation on the pollution produced from the ships in the ports of the European Union from which it turns out that the sulfur dioxide emissions (SO2) remarkablly have been reduced thanks to severeer regulations on the sulfur content in fuels used from the ships during the mooring and the anchorage in the communitarian ports.

The survey of the parameters key of the quality of the air in the ports of the Mediterranean is carried out by the scientists of the JRC before and after the effectiveness, in January 2010, of requirement of low sulfur content in the fuel to marine use. The modification of directive 1999/32/EC of 2005 has established that from January 2010 all the ships moored or berthed in the European ports must use fuels with an inferior sulfur content to 0.1% in weight. Previously, to outside from the declared areas zones of control of the sulfur emissions, it was allowed a sulfur content until 4.5%. The ships normally use heavy fuel oil that give 2012 must have a not advanced sulfur content to 3.5% for the transport ships goods (before the 2012 limit were of 4,5%). Medium, the sulfur content in the heavy fuel oil is of 2,4%. In order to make I confront - it has explained the JRC - the sulfur content in fuel used from terrestrial means of transport does not have to exceed 0.001%.

The Joint Research Centre has remembered that, online with the objectives of environmental protection of the EU and in order to consolidate the agreements reached from the International Maritime Organization, the Parliament and the Council of the EU they have agreed to subject to the ballot, after this summer, the modification of directive 1999/32/EC, for an ulterior reduction of the sulfur contents in fuels used to out of the ports ( on 15 July 2011). The maximum sulfur content in fuels for the ships will come down from 3.5% to 0.5% within 2020, while in the declared areas zones of control of the sulfur emissions (the Baltic Sea, the Sea of the North and the English Channel), where the current limit is of 1.5%, it will come down to 0.1% within 2015.

The measures of the parameters of the quality of the air in the ports of the Mediterranean are carried out by the Joint Research Centre in collaboration with the scientists of the University of Genoa and Florence, laboratory INFN-LABEC to Florence and the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Research Toilets of Barcelona using an automatic station of monitoring which placed on the Costa Pacifica cruise ship di Costa Crociere who has followed a route weekly magazine which predetermined in the Mediterranean Sea western during years 2009 and 2010.

The investigation has evidenced that in the European ports a medium decrease of 66% of the sulfur dioxide concentration has been found, injurious chemical substance to the health and the atmosphere. Measurements carried out in the ports to out of the EU have shown that the SO2 concentration has remained unchanged.

The sulfur dioxide concentration is diminished remarkablly in three of the four European ports where the measurements are carried out: Civitavecchia, Savona and Palma of Majorca. The measurements carried out in the port of Barcelona - it has specified the JRC - have turned out inconclusive because of the meaningful every day variations. However, independent measurements carried out by monitoring stations in the Catalan port and nearby of the port of Palm of Majorca have confirmed a strong decrease of the levels of sulfur dioxide in 2010 regarding 2009. On the contrary, in the port of Tunisi a reduction of sulfur dioxide has not been found neither of some of the other measured polluting agents in the four ports (Civitavecchia, Savona, Palm of Majorca and Tunisi). This - it has observed the JRC - demonstrates that the decrease of the sulfur dioxide concentration is the direct consequence of the application of the European norms.

Moreover - it has still found the JRC - the study confirmation that is a correlation between dioxide of sulfur and chemical elements typically emitted from the funnels of the ships, demonstrating that the ships represent the sulfur dioxide principal source in the ports.