OZONE in Urban Forests

EMoNFUr Project - LIFE+ 10 ENV/IT/399

U r b a n F o r e s t s t h e l u n g s o f t h e c i t yFINAL CONFERENCE

MILAN, Tuesday, June 17thth , 2014

OZONE in Urban Forests

Matej Rupel, Department of Forest Ecology,Slovenian Forestry Institute, Večna pot 2, SI – 1000 LJUBLJANA, Slovenia

matej.rupel@gozdis.si

Today is OZONE very popular! Realy?

BAR

Is O3 good orbad?

Statement : OZONE is a serious air pollutionproblem, adverselyaffecting crop yield

(quality andquantity), tree health

and growth .

Both ozone in the stratosphere(90%) and ground-level ozone in the troposphere (10%) occurnaturally.

and growth .

Elevated OZONE effects on trees

O3 LEAVES• Symtoms• Respiration• Photosynthesis• Lipid peroxidation

• Growth

Good quality of lifeof citizens

ROOTS

SOIL

INDIVIDUALGrowth

• Quality• Biomass• Yeild

• Biomass• Physiology• Exudate

• Respiration• Humidity• Soil microbes• Methane emissions

What's going on?

VOCNOx + +

Ground level ortroposphericozone is produced in thereaction ofVolatile OrganicCompounds -VOC with NOxand sunlight.

Fraxinus ornus Ulmus glabra

What happens?

Acer platanoidesCorylus avellana

Fagus sylvatica

Ozone visible injury

• bronzing, • intercostal stippling…

And what does it mean in urban forest? •• AlsoAlso Slovenian Slovenian forests, urban forests, urban

forests and forests and periurbanperiurban forests are forests are endangered endangered from pollution by air from pollution by air (ozone). (ozone).

1. Injury leaves on the forest trees and shrubs,2. Smaller surface area for photosynthesis,3. Worse growth and health of trees…

and cyclically;

a) less oxygen,b) wasting trees,c) less water retention,d) more dry

and warmer air…

e) worse healthof citizen…

Changes of O 3 concentration in future

AOT40 Ozone Levels in Europe. High AOT40 levels are harmful for crops. In the light green areas, the pollution levels are under the critical value of 3000 ppb.hours. In the dark green areas the critical level is exceeded up to two times. In the yellow areas the critical level is exceeded from two to three times. In the orange areas the critical level is exceeded from three to four times. In the most polluted areas of Europe, the red areas, the critical level is exceeded by more than four times. The results are obtained by running the Danish Eulerian Model (DEM), discretized on a (96x96) grid, i.e. by using (50 km x 50 km) grid-squares, over a space domain covering the whole of Europe together with parts of Africa, Asia and the Atlantic Ocean.

Modeling prediction on geographical distribution of ground-level ozone concentrations in 1993 above (average from May to August) and 2025 below.

(Lel

ieve

ldan

d D

ente

ner

2000

)

The forecasts are global increase of ozone!!!

What we done?

The Slovenian Forestry Institute have more thanten year study period (2004 – 2013), assessing

ozone visible injury on forest vegetation in Slovenia, observed as foliage damage on the

forest trees and shrubs species.

The Slovenian Forestry Institute has been performing passive sampling of ozone for more than 10 years. In 2013, we embarked on measuring forest trees and shrubs species.

Our first observations of negative impacts ofozone on forest tress were in year 2003. During

these years the visible ozone demages wereobserving at 5 to 11 intensive monitoring plots

(ICP-Forest Level II) and in the years 2013 and 2014 with

Project - LIFE+ 10 ENV/IT/399 also in Ljubljana urban and peri-urban forests.

embarked on measuring sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and ammonia. We monitor air pollution with passive samplers also in the capital of Slovenia –Ljubljana. We perform measurements in urban areas and urban and peri-urban forests (city parks, nature park Tivoli, Rožnik, Šišenski hrib, forest

No PlotYear

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

99 Ljubljana GIS ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤99 a Ljubljana Tivoli ¤

99 b Ljubljana Debeli hrib

¤

Identification of visible ozone or visible ozone like symp tomsin small trees and shrubs in Ljubljana urban forests

Visible foliar injury by ozone we survey on off-plots, on light-exposed sampling sites at urban forest edge.

hrib

Tropospheric ozone increases during summer –during the growth of vegetation.

Long dry season and high air temperatures in the second halfof July, are dried approximately 20% of the leaves on treesand shrubs, so that they turn yellow and fall off in early August 2013.

11stst observationobservation betweenbetween 1818thth andand 1717thth JulyJuly 2013 2013 -- NO NO VISIBLE OZONE VISIBLE OZONE SYMPTOMS.SYMPTOMS.

22ndnd observationobservation betweenbetween 2121stst andand 2828thth September 2013 September 2013 -- NO VISIBLE OZONE NO VISIBLE OZONE

Foliage ozone damages are diferenteach year. Typical

Nature park Tivoli, Rožnik andŠišenski hribin LjubljanaTree species and shrubs observed on plot Ljubljana TIVOLIFagus sylvatica

Tilia cordataCorylus avellanaJuglans regiaTilia sp.Sorbus ariaAcerpseudoplatanusAcer platanoides

Quercus rubraQuercus sessilifloraSalix sp.Carpinus betulusPopulus nigraSambucus nigraSorbus aucupariaViburnum lantanaViburnum opuluseach year. Typical

ozone visible damageswere in the year 2013 in Ljubljana urban forests not found.

Tree species and shrubs observed on plot Ljubljana - DEBELI HRIB

Fagus sylvaticaPicea abiesAbies albaPopulus tremulaCornus masCastanea sativaAcer pseudoplatanusAcer platanoides

Corylus avellanaFraxinus excelsiorLaburnum sp.Robinia pseudoacaciaPrunus aviumCrataegus oxyacanthaCrataegus leavigataCornus sanguineaMalus domestica

Acer platanoidesCornus sp.

Viburnum opulus

What we can do in Ljubljana, Milan…?

Different species show different sensibility to the same ozone dose.Planting native species that are not on LIST OF EUROPEAN OZONE SENSITIVE SPECIES.Strong street and park tree programme.

RIGHT TREE to RIGHT PLACE (“Managing Trees in one American city — Charlotte, North

Educating of the importance of trees, forest, treecare…

Photo: Andrej Verlič

Due to the environment pollution and impacts on the forestvegetation, we present the acquired conclusions to the wider

public.

Typical ozone visible injury on a Populus nigra L. leaf.

Thank you for your attention!