Contribution of harbour activities to levels of particulate matter in a harbour area: Hada Project-Tarragona Spain

The present study seeks to estimate the impact of harbour activities on PM10 levels based on a complete chemical characterisation of 90 PM10 samples periodically collected between September 2004 and September 2005 in the harbour of Tarragona as part of the HADA (LIFE Program EC) project. Interpretation of the time series of major and trace PM10 components allowed us to identify peaks of PM10 components related to the activities in the harbour. A factor analysis of PM10 enabled us to identify the crustal, traffic, secondary and sea spray sources, and one other source related to the re-suspension of materials handled in the harbour. The multi-linear regression analysis demonstrated a high anthropogenic contribution (62%) for PM10 at the harbour, mainly related to traffic (34% of PM10). Comparison with an earlier study, using the same methodology, at an urban background monitoring station in Tarragona, showed a good correlation for the annual average concentrations of most PM10 components at the two stations. At the harbour higher concentrations were obtained for tracers (P and Mn, and V and Ni in a lesser extent) of some mineral bulk cargo materials. Re-suspension of loose materials by means of wind and/or traffic was identified as one of the major contributors to PM10 in the harbour. Abatement strategies designed to reduce levels of PM10 in the harbour and nearby areas are provided.