Effects of ozone, nitrogen deposition, and other stressors on montane ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada

Fenn, Mark E.; Poth, Merrily; Bytnerowicz, Andrzej; Sickman, James O.; Takemoto, B.K.

doi:10.1016/s1474-8177(02)02005-3

Cited by 34 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 92 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Extra steps were needed to ensure that the greater Sierra Nevada model isolates air quality effects from the strong influence elevation naturally exerts on lichen communities (Jovan and McCune 2006). The problem arises because air quality and elevation are at least somewhat correlated with each other in the study area (Fenn et al 2003c). …”

Section: Model Adjustment For Elevation Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Instances of high N-loading are well-documented for the southern Sierras (reviewed in Fenn et al 2003c). These mixed-conifer forests lie downwind of the San Joaquin Valley where the FIA Lichen Indicator (see chapter 4) and the Community Multiscale Air Quality Model (CMAQ) (Buyn and Ching 1999, Tonnesen et al 2002, Weiss 2006 both suggest high N concentrations.…”

Section: Major Deposition Patternsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…42). The majority of the western boundary lies along the highly agricultural Central Valley (chapter 4), which is widely recognized as an important source of pollutants carried into Sierran forests (Bytnerowicz and Fenn 1996;Bytnerowicz et al 2002;Cahill et al 1996;Fenn et al 2003bFenn et al , 2003c. By comparison, the greater Sierra Nevada is considerably less populated and less developed for agriculture and industry (Momsen 2001).…”

Section: Introduction To the Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Overall, long-term air quality data are limited although various short-term monitoring campaigns help characterize conditions in the Sierra Nevada Range (reviewed by Fenn et al 2003c). It is well established that nitrogen (N) pollutants can reach high levels in some Sierran forests, most especially at sites in the southwestern foothills (~15 kg N˜ha ) (Fenn et al 2003c, Weiss 2006. Deposition is apparently high enough in some cases to provoke classic ecological symptoms of …”

Section: Introduction To the Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Lichen bioindication of biodiversity, air quality, and climate: baseline results from monitoring in Washington, Oregon, and California.

Jovan¹

2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Model Adjustment For Elevation Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Major Deposition Patternsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introduction To the Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introduction To the Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Lichen bioindication of biodiversity, air quality, and climate: baseline results from monitoring in Washington, Oregon, and California.

Jovan¹

2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Further, nitrogen deposition rates in southern California are among the highest in the United States, with deposition ranging from 2.5 to 4.0 g N m − 2 year − 1 in many regions (Fenn et al, 2003). If these rates continue, nitrogen loading will remain a significant driver of southern California's ecosystems (Padgett and Allen, 1999;Fenn et al, 2003;Zavaleta et al, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal variation overshadows the response of leaf litter microbial communities to simulated global change

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bacteria and fungi drive the decomposition of dead plant biomass (litter), an important step in the terrestrial carbon cycle. Here we investigate the sensitivity of litter microbial communities to simulated global change (drought and nitrogen addition) in a California annual grassland. Using 16S and 28S rDNA amplicon pyrosequencing, we quantify the response of the bacterial and fungal communities to the treatments and compare these results to background, temporal (seasonal and interannual) variability of the communities. We found that the drought and nitrogen treatments both had significant effects on microbial community composition, explaining 2-6% of total compositional variation. However, microbial composition was even more strongly influenced by seasonal and annual variation (explaining 14-39%). The response of microbial composition to drought varied by season, while the effect of the nitrogen addition treatment was constant through time. These compositional responses were similar in magnitude to those seen in microbial enzyme activities and the surrounding plant community, but did not correspond to a consistent effect on leaf litter decomposition rate. Overall, these patterns indicate that, in this ecosystem, temporal variability in the composition of leaf litter microorganisms largely surpasses that expected in a short-term global change experiment. Thus, as for plant communities, future microbial communities will likely be determined by the interplay between rapid, local background variability and slower, global changes.

show abstract

Current and future ozone risks to global terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem processes

Fuhrer

Martin

Mills

et al. 2016

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Risks associated with exposure of individual plant species to ozone (O3) are well documented, but implications for terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem processes have received insufficient attention. This is an important gap because feedbacks to the atmosphere may change as future O3 levels increase or decrease, depending on air quality and climate policies. Global simulation of O3 using the Community Earth System Model (CESM) revealed that in 2000, about 40% of the Global 200 terrestrial ecoregions (ER) were exposed to O3 above thresholds for ecological risks, with highest exposures in North America and Southern Europe, where there is field evidence of adverse effects of O3, and in central Asia. Experimental studies show that O3 can adversely affect the growth and flowering of plants and alter species composition and richness, although some communities can be resilient. Additional effects include changes in water flux regulation, pollination efficiency, and plant pathogen development. Recent research is unraveling a range of effects belowground, including changes in soil invertebrates, plant litter quantity and quality, decomposition, and nutrient cycling and carbon pools. Changes are likely slow and may take decades to become detectable. CESM simulations for 2050 show that O3 exposure under emission scenario RCP8.5 increases in all major biomes and that policies represented in scenario RCP4.5 do not lead to a general reduction in O3 risks; rather, 50% of ERs still show an increase in exposure. Although a conceptual model is lacking to extrapolate documented effects to ERs with limited or no local information, and there is uncertainty about interactions with nitrogen input and climate change, the analysis suggests that in many ERs, O3 risks will persist for biodiversity at different trophic levels, and for a range of ecosystem processes and feedbacks, which deserves more attention when assessing ecological implications of future atmospheric pollution and climate change.

show abstract

Effects of ozone, nitrogen deposition, and other stressors on montane ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada

Cited by 34 publications

References 92 publications

Lichen bioindication of biodiversity, air quality, and climate: baseline results from monitoring in Washington, Oregon, and California.

Lichen bioindication of biodiversity, air quality, and climate: baseline results from monitoring in Washington, Oregon, and California.

Temporal variation overshadows the response of leaf litter microbial communities to simulated global change

Current and future ozone risks to global terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem processes

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About