Effect of Exhaust Emissions Produced by Fishing Vessels on Air Pollution: A Case Study of Purse Seine Vessels Operating in the Black Sea

In this study, exhaust emissions originating from purse seine fishing vessels were calculated. A bottom-up method based on ship activities was used for emission calculations. Necessary information for the calculations was obtained from the BAGIS (Fishing Vessels Monitoring System) system. Eighteen purse seiners in the Black Sea region with a length of 20 m or more engaged in fishing activities in the 2017-2018 fishing season were used as samples. These vessels were categorized into three different groups according to their length. The emissions produced by each length group were calculated separately under different conditions for vessels identified as “port”, “operation”, and “navigation”. The total emissions in the Black Sea region and Türkiye were estimated. This study provides emission estimates using operational conditions and real data from Turkish-flagged purse seiners engaged in fishing in the Black Sea. In this respect, this research presents novelty and addresses an important gap in the existing literature. The annual emission amount of purse seine fishing vessels in the Black Sea is 260,000 tons, while the annual emission amount from purse seine vessels throughout Türkiye has been calculated as 440,000 tons. As a result, the effectiveness of the Emission Control Area (ECA)/Sulphur ECA region implementation in reducing emissions from maritime activities has been demonstrated. In addition, this study constitutes a source for the exhaust emission inventory of purse seiners in the Black Sea region.