Response of BVOC emissions from Fraxinus excelsior to biotic stress

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JRC-Ispra Atmosphere - Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station: 2016 report

A comprehensive set of essential atmospheric variables have been measured at the JRC-Ispra Atmosphere - Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station (ABC-IS) for several years to assess the impact of European policies and international conventions on air pollution and climate forcing. The variables we measure at the Atmospheric Observatory in Ispra include greenhouse gas concentrations (CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6), radon (222Rn) activity concentration, short-lived gaseous and particulate pollutant (CO, SO2, NO, NO2, O3, PM2.5 and its main ionic and carbonaceous constituents) concentrations, atmospheric particle micro-physical characteristics (number concentration and size distribution) and optical properties (light scattering and absorption in-situ, light scattering and extinction vertical profiles remotely), eutrophying and acidifying species (SO42-, NO3-, NH4+) wet deposition. Vegetation atmosphere exchanges (CO2, O3, H2O and heat) are measured at our Forest Flux Station of San Rossore, backed up by meteorological and pedological measurements. The ABC-IS 2016 report presents the data produced during the past year in the context of the previous years of measurements.JRC.C.5-Air and Climat

JRC – Ispra: Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station: 2015 Report

A comprehensive set of essential atmospheric variables have been measured at the JRC-Ispra Atmosphere -Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station (ABC-IS) for several years to detect the impact of European policies and international conventions on air pollution and climate forcing. The variables we measure include greenhouse gas concentrations (CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6), radon (222Rn)activity concentration, short-lived gaseous and particulate pollutants (CO, SO2, NO, NO2, O3, PM2.5 and its main ionic and carbonaceous constituents), atmospheric particle micro-physical characteristics (number concentration and size distribution) and optical properties (light scattering and absorption in-situ, light scattering and extinction vertical profiles remotely), eutrophying and acidifying species (SO42-, NO3-, NH4+) wet deposition, and vegetation atmosphere exchanges (CO2, O3, H2O and heat), backed up by meteorological and pedological measurements. All the measurements performed at ABC-IS are made under international projects and programs like InGOS (Integrated non-CO2 Greenhouse gas Observation System), ACTRIS (the EU research Infra-Structure for the observation of Aerosols, Clouds and TRace gases), EMEP (co-operative Program for Monitoring and Evaluation of the long range transmission of air pollutants in Europe) and GAW (Global Atmosphere Watch), which implies the use of standard methods and scales, and the participation in quality assurance activities. The JRC has a leading role in ACTRIS and EMEP regarding the quality assurance for carbonaceous aerosol measurements. All the data obtained at ABC-IS are submitted to international open data bases (www.europe-fluxdata.eu, fluxnet.ornl.gov, www.ingos-infrastructure.eu, ebas.nilu.no,) and can be freely downloaded from these web sites. The data we produce are used in European wide assessments, for model inputs and validation, and for calibrating satellite airborne sensors. The ABC-IS 2015 report presents the data produced during the past year in the context of the previous years of measurements.JRC.C.5-Air and Climat

JRC – Ispra Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station: 2014 Report

The Institute for Environment and Sustainability provides long-term observations of the atmosphere within international programs and research projects. These observations are performed from the research infrastructure named ABC-IS: Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station. Most measurements are performed at the JRC-Ispra site, but observations are also carried out from two other platforms: the forest station in San Rossore, and a ship cruising in the Western Mediterranean sea. This document reports about the measurement programs, the equipment which is deployed, the data quality assessment, and the results obtained for each site. Our observations are presented, compared to each other, as well as to historical data obtained over close to 30 years at the Ispra site.JRC.H.2-Air and Climat

JRC – Ispra Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station 2013 report

The Institute for Environment and Sustainability provides long-term observations of the atmosphere within international programs and research projects. These observations are performed from the research infrastructure named ABC-IS: Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station. Most measurements are performed at the JRC-Ispra site, but observations are also carried out from two other platforms: the forest station in San Rossore, and a ship cruising in the Western Mediterranean sea. This document reports about the measurement programs, the equipment which is deployed, the data quality assessment, and the results obtained for each site. Our observations are presented, compared to each other, as well as to historical data obtained over more than 25 years at the Ispra site.JRC.H.2-Air and Climat

ECLAIRE: Effects of Climate Change on Air Pollution Impacts and Response Strategies for European Ecosystems. Project final report

The central goal of ECLAIRE is to assess how climate change will alter the extent to which air pollutants threaten terrestrial ecosystems. Particular attention has been given to nitrogen compounds, especially nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ammonia (NH3), as well as Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds (BVOCs) in relation to tropospheric ozone (O3) formation, including their interactions with aerosol components. ECLAIRE has combined a broad program of field and laboratory experimentation and modelling of pollution fluxes and ecosystem impacts, advancing both mechanistic understanding and providing support to European policy makers. The central finding of ECLAIRE is that future climate change is expected to worsen the threat of air pollutants on Europe’s ecosystems. Firstly, climate warming is expected to increase the emissions of many trace gases, such as agricultural NH3, the soil component of NOx emissions and key BVOCs. Experimental data and numerical models show how these effects will tend to increase atmospheric N deposition in future. By contrast, the net effect on tropospheric O3 is less clear. This is because parallel increases in atmospheric CO2 concentrations will offset the temperature-driven increase for some BVOCs, such as isoprene. By contrast, there is currently insufficient evidence to be confident that CO2 will offset anticipated climate increases in monoterpene emissions. Secondly, climate warming is found to be likely to increase the vulnerability of ecosystems towards air pollutant exposure or atmospheric deposition. Such effects may occur as a consequence of combined perturbation, as well as through specific interactions, such as between drought, O3, N and aerosol exposure. These combined effects of climate change are expected to offset part of the benefit of current emissions control policies. Unless decisive mitigation actions are taken, it is anticipated that ongoing climate warming will increase agricultural and other biogenic emissions, posing a challenge for national emissions ceilings and air quality objectives related to nitrogen and ozone pollution. The O3 effects will be further worsened if progress is not made to curb increases in methane (CH4) emissions in the northern hemisphere. Other key findings of ECLAIRE are that: 1) N deposition and O3 have adverse synergistic effects. Exposure to ambient O3 concentrations was shown to reduce the Nitrogen Use Efficiency of plants, both decreasing agricultural production and posing an increased risk of other forms of nitrogen pollution, such as nitrate leaching (NO3-) and the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O); 2) within-canopy dynamics for volatile aerosol can increase dry deposition and shorten atmospheric lifetimes; 3) ambient aerosol levels reduce the ability of plants to conserve water under drought conditions; 4) low-resolution mapping studies tend to underestimate the extent of local critical loads exceedance; 5) new dose-response functions can be used to improve the assessment of costs, including estimation of the value of damage due to air pollution effects on ecosystems, 6) scenarios can be constructed that combine technical mitigation measures with dietary change options (reducing livestock products in food down to recommended levels for health criteria), with the balance between the two strategies being a matter for future societal discussion. ECLAIRE has supported the revision process for the National Emissions Ceilings Directive and will continue to deliver scientific underpinning into the future for the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution

ECLAIRE third periodic report

The ÉCLAIRE project (Effects of Climate Change on Air Pollution Impacts and Response Strategies for European Ecosystems) is a four year (2011-2015) project funded by the EU's Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7)

Biogenic volatile organic compound analysis from selected European deciduous and coniferous tree species: composition and emission rate

Plants re-emit a fraction of assimilated carbon into the atmosphere as biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs). BVOCs are a heterogeneous group of compounds that includes terpenes (isoprene, monoterpenes, sesquiterpnes) as well as alkanes, alkenes, alcohols, aldehydes, esters, ethers, acids. These compounds contribute to the formation of troposheric ozone (O3) and secondary organic aerosols (SOA) and thus can play an important role in the Earth global system. Recent studies have also emphasized that global warming will lead to important feedback between BVOC emissions and climate change. BVOC emissions are regulated by a range of biotic and abiotic factors and vary from species to species. The first aim of the thesis was to develop an innovative accelerated solid-phase dynamic extraction (ASPDE) technique for BVOC measurements. The second aim was to study the BVOC emissions of selected European common or/and poorly investigated tree species: Quercus robur (oak), Fraxinus excelsior (ash), Abies alba (silver fir), Pinus nigra supsp. laricio (black pine), Larix decidua (larch). Experiments were carried out at ambient conditions in Flanders (Belgium). This research provides information on BVOC measurement techniques as well as emission patterns and rates of BVOCs from aforementioned tree species. Moreover, seasonality and other factors influencing BVOC emissions are also explored. Overall, collected data contribute to BVOC emission databases and can be used for improving the estimation of regional and global BVOC budgets