INTRODUCTION

The aim of this report is to carry out a methodological review of port impact studies and their possible definitions. The aims and targets of impact studies, and the different methodologies used to deal with this issue, are classified and analyzed.
The first studies on the economic impact of port activity emerged in the United States in the second half of the 1960s. The ports of New York and New Jersey were the first to be taken into consideration. In the 1970s, the first methodological discussions took place, based on the development of the input–output model and its application to the measurement of the impact of ports. The main stances opposing this kind of study were advocated by Robert C. Waters, while those in favour had Semoon Chang as their main champion, and most of Waters’ criticisms were dealt with.

1. PORT ECONOMIC IMPACTS

Ports contribute much to their economies, and port economic impact analysis is the major tool for documenting those contributions.
The primary objective of port impact studies is to inform the public of the importance of port services, and additional benefits that may exist vary with particular studies. And also, the decision of local governmental agencies to construct port facilities is often preceded by a port economic impact study.
The majority of existing port impact studies begin with definitions of port impacts, as an improper notion of port impact might well lead to an entirely wrong estimation of the total economic impact of a port. One of the major challenges in port impact studies is to identify the port-related industries and find out the degree of port dependency of these industries. Generally, economic impacts of port on the local economy can be divided into two way; primary or direct impact and secondary or indirect or induced impact.

2.1. Definition of the Primary Impact

Direct