Gulf ports brace for a rough 2009.

Whether they had a foul 2008 or a fair - and some Gulf ports had a surprisingly healthy year, considering the turbulent economy - nearly all are hunkering down for the rough weather they expect in 2009.

Steel imports increased 33 percent at Houston and 21 percent at Brownsville in 2008. Bagged cargo is booming at the Port of Lake Charles; steel and other metals are up at Beaumont and Mobile; wind cargo is still strong at Corpus Christi and Freeport.

None of these ports are immune to the souring economy, however, and others are already feeling the pinch. Forest products have fallen off almost everywhere. Florida's decimated housing industry has meant a tough time for breakbulk at the ports of Tampa and Manatee, and falling U.S. and global demand has hurt New Orleans. But no matter how 2008's fierce winds affected them, these and the rest of the Gulf's ports have big plans for the future.

Florida ports

Pensacola

Pensacola's general cargo decreased 45 percent during fiscal 2008, which ended on Sept. 30, to 47,291 tons from 85,890 tons in fiscal 2007. The falloff resulted from a decline in poultry exports, which dropped to 24,000 tons in fiscal 2008 from 75,000 tons in fiscal 2007, because of the loss of a key African market. The port's 25,000-square-foot cold storage facility, Pate Stevedoring, lacks blast freezers and is not large enough to handle the tonnage needed to switch to serving larger markets such as Russia or eastern Europe.

However, in December, a sometimes-controversial lease amendment was approved by the Pensacola City Council, which oversees the port. This year, Pate Stevedoring will expand its facility to 58,000 square feet, as well as add five blast cells capable of blast-freezing a total of 10 truck loads per day.