Evaluating Ozone Effects on Growth of Mature Forest Trees with High-Resolution Dendrometer Systems
McLaughlin SB and Nosal M. 2009. Evaluating Ozone Effects on Growth of Mature Forest Trees with High-Resolution Dendrometer Systems. Pages 153-177. In McLaughlin SB and Nosal M. Developments in Environmental Science. Developments in Environmental Science. Volume 9
Both manual and electromechanical dendrometer techniques have been used to define growth patterns of mature forest trees at scales ranging from hourly to seasonal, and to evaluate the roles of ozone and physical climate as contributors to observed variability in growth. This chapter addresses the issues of quantifying and modeling the specific effects of ozone in the presence of co-varying influences of other important environmental variables. A variety of statistical models have been developed that provide strongly converging evidence that short-term variations in ozone exposure, although they contribute only about 2% to hourly scale variations, have strongly accumulative effects over the growing season. Model predictions of growth loss in the range of 50% in high ozone years agreed well with observed growth changes with similar levels of ozone increase for selected sample trees. Observed and predicted growth losses in a high ozone year greatly exceed levels typically assumed for mature forest trees based on controlled studies with seedling trees.
- Type
- Book Chapter
- Authors
- McLaughlin, Samuel; Nosal, Miloslav
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- dendrometer, growth loss, GRSM-00102, Look Rock, mature trees, Methodology, Ozone, Seedlings, statistical models, Twin Creeks
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Air and Climate | Air Quality | Ozone