Download or read book Soil Chemistry Characterization of Acid Sensitive Watersheds in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park written by Mary Ann E. Grell and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 83 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Atmospheric acidic deposition has negatively impacted many Appalachian watersheds in the eastern United States and soils play a key role in the biogeochemical processes that govern the fate and transport of the acidic pollutants. Thus, the collection of soil chemistry data, a previously lacking component, is essential to understand the soil processes related to the retention or release of basic and acidic ions and is imperative for the prediction of ecosystem recovery. Soil chemical properties related to acidification were characterized for 25 sites within eight acid-sensitive watersheds located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM). Relationships were identified by comparing soil chemistry to watershed characteristics including site location, soil characteristics, forest type, geomorphic factors and the presence of Anakeesta. The Walker Camp Prong watershed had significantly higher soil base saturation, calcium and magnesium than all other study watersheds as a result of the application of dolomitic limestone to roadways for wintertime traction control. Significant differences in soil chemistry between the spatially close watersheds of Cosby and Rock Creek demonstrated how local factors can substantially influence the watershed acidification response. The chemical properties of the six study soil types, representing 60% of the entire GRSM, had no significant differences, suggesting soil chemistry must be governed by external inputs and basin characteristics, more so than parent material. This idea was strengthen by the ability to relate many soil chemical properties to forest type and identifying other chemical properties as functions of elevation, slope and soil depth. Also, the presence of unexposed Anakeesta did not seem to have any significant effect on soil chemical properties because all significant differences could be linked to factors unrelated to surficial geology. The majority of the soils of the GRSM study watersheds seem to be experiencing the deleterious effects of long-term exposure to acidic deposition and it could be assumed that soils in many other areas of the park may be enduring the same. The results provide a comparative baseline dataset and important input parameters for biogeochemical modeling. The relationships identified among watershed factors and soil chemical properties can aid in future study designs.
Download or read book Soil Nitrification and Mineralization Rates Along an Elevation Gradient in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park written by Christopher James Rolison and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 67 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM) is an area sensitive to acid deposition. Although reports indicate there have been reductions of acid deposition in the eastern United States, water quality in streams has not recovered to perceived natural levels. Coupled soil biogeochemical processes of nitrification and nitrogen mineralization can acidify soil water and play a key role in the fate of nitrogen-based acid deposition and observed stream acidification. Characterizing nitrogen decomposition rates at different elevations improves our understanding of the potential effects of acid deposition and soil interactions with acid ions. Soil chemical properties and potential reaction rates for nitrification and mineralization among 36 sites in three GRSM watersheds were characterized by 28-day laboratory incubation experiments. In addition, relationships were identified by comparing soil chemistry to watershed characteristics including site location, soil characteristics, and geomorphic factors. Nitrification rates ranged between 1 and 177 [MU]eq kg−1 dry soil day−1, and mineralization rates ranged between 2 and 339 [MU]eq kg−1 dry soil day−1. For the three watersheds combined, mineralization and nitrification rates were significantly correlated with elevation. Mineralization was increasing at a rate of 0.1578 / 0.0816 [MU]eq kg−1 dry soil day−1 m−1 in the A and B/C soil horizons, and nitrification at 0.1269 / 0.0425 [MU]eq kg−1 dry soil day−1 m−1, in the A and B/C soil horizons. For individual watersheds, Cosby and the West Prong of the Little Pigeon shared this significant positive correlation while the Noland Divide watershed did not because sample sites were only located at higher elevations. Soil horizon class played a key role in controlling the nitrogen cycle processes, where the A soil horizon was found to be more dependent on total organic nitrogen, and the B/C soil horizon was more dependent on organic matter. Nitrification and mineralization rates were not correlated with site slope, organic matter to total organic nitrogen ratio, and A soil horizon depth. The study results illustrate that nitrification and mineralization play a significant part of the soil biogeochemical process that govern episodic stream acidification response in the GRSM.
Download or read book Long term Acid Deposition Effects on Soil and Water Chemistry in the Noland Divide Watershed Great Smoky Mountains National Park USA written by Meijun Cai and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 163 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Impacts of long-term acid deposition on soil and water chemistry are of particular concern in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM), receiving some of the highest acid deposition rates in the eastern United States and limited by inadequate acid buffering capacity. In the GRSM, the Noland Divide watershed (NDW) has been monitored since 1991 for water chemistries of precipitation, throughfall, soil, and stream. The impacts of long-term acidic deposition on stream water quality in the NDW were investigated through: 1) development of an ion input-output budget; 2) analysis of trends and seasonal patterns for major ions; 3) comparison of net export rates between baseflow and stormflow periods; and 4) characterization of soil chemistry and transport properties for various potential acid deposition scenarios. Between 1991 and 2006, throughfall deposition remained unchanged and consisted of 1,735 eq ha−1 yr−1 of SO4 2−, 863 eq ha−1 yr−1 of NO3−, and 284 eq ha−1 yr−1 of NH4 . Net retention of sulfate was estimated at 61 % being controlled by soil adsorption, and inorganic nitrogen was retained at 32% presumably due to plant uptake. Nitrogen retention increased by 44.30 eq ha−1 yr−1 over the study period. Besides deposition, soil acidity was increased by nitrification and precipitation-driven desorption of previously accumulated sulfate. To neutralize soil acidity, Ca2+, Mg2+ and Na+ were depleted from NDW by 77, 46 and 66 eq ha−1 yr−1, respectively. Due to the continuous addition of acidity, base saturation in soil was reduced to 4% at present. Mobilization of aluminum and other metals (Mn and Zn) may be enhanced by these geochemical processes, potentially causing toxic conditions to fish and other biota in the GRSM streams. Impacts of acidic deposition on streams were confirmed by measured stream pH below 6 and acid neutralizing capacity below 0.01 meq L−1. During stormflows pH and ANC depressions occurred primarily due to increases in sulfate transport, leading to episodic acidification events. This study provides new information on hydrological and biogeochemical processes that regulate stream acidification events in the southern Appalachian region, supporting improved management strategies for GRSM streams.
Download or read book Acid Precipitation written by and published by . This book was released on 1991-07 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Energy Research Abstracts written by and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page 1200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Ninth Annual Scientific Research Meeting May 19 20 1983 Park Headquarters Great Smoky Mountains National Park Gatlinburg Tennessee written by Jim Wood and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Chemical Flux During Event Stormwater Flows in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park written by Matthew Williams Aplin and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Streams in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee have been impacted by acid deposition from anthropogenic sources for decades. Recent declines in acid deposition throughout the eastern U.S. appear to be initiating improvements in stream water quality. However, watershed recovery could take decades due to regional differences in the hydrologic and biogeochemical processes that influence chemical fate and transport. These processes have been extensively studied at longer time scales (i.e. seasonally, annually), by long-term annual ion budgets, and study designs based on grab samples. Less known are the acidification effects on streams through rapid ion transport during storm events. Of particular importance is advancing our understanding of ion transport at the storm-event scale with respect to soil sulfate desorption, nitrate saturation, and base cation depletion. In this study automated samplers allowed for continuous and time dependent stream sampling during stormflow events, which collected samples used to characterize event-based flux of stormwater chemistry. Two streams, one in a small, high elevation watershed and one in a larger, low elevation watershed were selected for study because of their distinct differences in hydrology. Eight events were sampled at each site (average of 23 samples per event) and analyzed for anions, cations, dissolved metals, pH, and acid neutralizing capacity. Samples were organized into three hydrograph categories (rising limb, peak, and falling limb). Throughfall samples were also utilized for an ion event-based input and output mass comparison. On average, sulfate desorption was not observed at either site because concentrations were not significantly different between hydrograph rising and falling limbs. Nitrate saturation and base cation depletion appears to govern the storm-based acidification response because of increased concentrations of nitrate and decreasing concentrations of base cations during events at the low elevation site. Although acid deposition has declined, stream acidification was still observed with episodic drops in pH and ANC governed by the lack of base cations to buffer acid anions from inorganic nitrogen and possibly organic acids. Further study is needed on the influence of organic acids in the response to acidification in headwater streams.
Download or read book Proceedings Fourth Annual Gatlinburg Acid Rain Conference written by and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Impact Assessment of Airborne Acidic Deposition on the Aquatic Environment of the United States and Canada written by Gary E. Glass and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Environmental Characteristics and Water Quality of Hydrologic Benchmark Network Stations in the West central United States 1963 95 written by M. Alisa Mast and published by . This book was released on 1984 with total page 588 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Eighth Annual Scientific Research Meeting June 24 25 1982 Tremont Environmental Education Center Great Smoky Mountains National Park Townsend Tennessee written by Jim Wood and published by . This book was released on 1982 with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Environmental Characteristics and Water Quality of Hydrologic Benchmark Network Stations in the Eastern United States 1963 95 written by M. Alisa Mast and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Air Pollution and Its Impacts on U S National Parks written by Timothy J. Sullivan and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2017-02-03 with total page 565 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A variety of air pollutants are emitted into the atmosphere from human-caused and natural emissions sources throughout the United States and elsewhere. These contaminants impact sensitive natural resources in wilderness, including the national parks. The system of national parks in the United States is among our greatest assets. This book provides a compilation and synthesis of current scientific understanding regarding the causes and effects of these pollutants within national park lands. It describes pollutant emissions, deposition, and exposures; it identifies the critical (tipping point) loads of pollutant deposition at which adverse impacts are manifested.
Download or read book General Technical Report INT written by and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 540 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Acidic Deposition and Aquatic Ecosystems written by Donald F. Charles and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-04-17 with total page 742 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Acidic deposition and its effect on aquatic ecosystems have become major scientific and public policy issues in the United States since the early 1970s, and many diverse studies have been completed. This book is the first comprehensive, integrated synthesis of available information on current and potential effects of acidic precipitation on lakes and streams in geographic regions with a high number of low-alkalinity surface water from the Adirondacks and the Southern Blue Ridge to the Upper Midwest to the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra Nevada, and the Cascades. Written by leading authors, the book examines the current status of water chemistry and characterizes the processes controlling water chemistry on a regional basis by using and comparing high-quality data sets. Methods for the assessment of long-term changes in water chemistry and their effects in fish and other biota are also presented. The book amply illustrates the substantial diversity among geographical regions with respect to the nature of surface waters and the complexity of their response to acidic deposition. This volume will be of great interest to researchers in limnology, aquatic ecology, environmental chemistry, hydrology, and atmospheric sciences. It will also serve as an important reference for environmental managers and policy makers.
Download or read book Lake and Reservoir Management written by North American Lake Management Society. Conference and published by . This book was released on 1984 with total page 628 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book National Surface Water Survey written by and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
