Fire Effects on Carbon and Nitrogen Budgets in Forests

Estimates of C and N loss by gasification during a wildfire in a Jeffrey pine (Pinus Jeffreyii [Grev. and Balf.]) forest in Little Valley, Nevada are compared to potential losses in more mesic forests in the Integrated Forest Study (IFS). In Little Valley, the fire consumed the forest floor, foliage, and an unknown amount of soil organic matter, but little standing large woody material. On an ecosystem level, the fire consumed approximately equal percentages of C and N (12 and 9%, respectively), but a considerably greater proportion of aboveground N (71%) than C (21%). Salvage logging was the major factor in loss, and C lost from the site will not be replenished until forest vegetation is established and succeeds the current shrub vegetation. N₂ fixation by Ceanothus velutinus [Dougl.] in the post-fire shrub vegetation appears to have more than made up for N lost by gasification in the fire over the first 16 yr, and may result in long-term increases in C stocks once forest vegetation takes over the site. N loss from the fire equaled > 1,000 years of atmospheric N deposition and > 10,000 years of N leaching at current rates. Calculations of C and N losses from theoretical wildfires in the IFS sites show similar patterns to those in Little Valley. Calculated losses of N in most of the IFS sites would equal many centuries of leaching. Conceptual models of biogeochemical cycling in forests need to include episodic events such as fire.     

Biosolid colloid-mediated transport of copper, zinc, and lead in waste-amended soils

Increasing land applications of biosolid wastes as soil amendments have raised concerns about potential toxic effects of associated metals on the environment. This study investigated the ability of biosolid colloids to transport metals associated with organic waste amendments through subsurface soil environments with leaching experiments involving undisturbed soil monoliths. Biosolid colloids were fractionated from a lime-stabilized, an aerobically digested, and a poultry manure organic waste and applied onto the monoliths at a rate of 0.7 cm/h. Eluents were monitored for Cu, Zn, Pb, and colloid concentrations over 16 to 24 pore volumes of leaching. Mass-balance calculations indicated significantly higher (up to 77 times) metal elutions in association with the biosolid colloids in both total and soluble fractions over the control treatments. Eluted metal loads varied with metal, colloid, and soil type, following the sequences Zn = Cu > Pb, and ADB > PMB > LSB colloids. Colloid and metal elution was enhanced by decreasing pH and colloid size, and increasing soil macroporosity and organic matter content. Breakthrough curves were mostly irregular, showing several maxima and minima as a result of preferential macropore flow and multiple clogging and flushing cycles. Soil- and colloid-metal sorption affinities were not reliable predictors of metal attenuation/elution loads, underscoring the dynamic nature of transport processes. The findings demonstrate the important role of biosolid colloids as contaminant carriers and the significant risk they pose, if unaccounted, for soil and ground water contamination in areas receiving heavy applications of biosolid waste amendments.     

TEMPORAL VARIATION IN THE NUTRIENT EXPORT OF RIVERS DRAINING INTO THE BAY OF QUINTE,ONTARIO, CANADA1

ABSTRACT: Annual exports of total phosphorus, soluble reactive phosphorus, and total nitrogen are presented for the period 1965–1974, for five rivers draining into the Bay of Quinte, Lake Ontario. The export values are typical for the physiography and land use though the results indicate that soluble reactive phosphorus exports for the four largest rivers have been declining. Also the variation in export of total phosphorus and total nitrogen is highly correlated with variation in annual runoff. This is noted as being a factor deserving more attention in future efforts to classify nutrient export values in relation to land use and geology.     

Diagnostic variables as predictors of ecological risk

The state of an ecosystem may be represented by a multidemensional state vector,x. The goal of ecosystem management is to insure that the ecosystem remains within some setX of acceptable states, such thatx X. Since ecosystem management decisions must be based on limited knowledge, a small number of diagnostic variables must be found which accurately reflect ecosystem state. If the vector of diagnostic variables, , is found to be within a specified set , the state vectorx is predicted to be withinX. The selection and use of such diagnostic variables is examined in the context of an aquatic ecosystem simulation model. Techniques used in searching for diagnostic criteria include multiple linear regression, discriminant analysis, and visual inspection of graphical data displays. The adequacy of a diagnostic criterion as a predictor of ecological risk is demonstrated to be a function of the associated rates of type I and type II statistical errors. A simple cost-benefit analysis is undertaken to illustrate one approach for choosing an optimal balance between these error rates.     

SUSPENSOIDS IN NEW YORK CITY'S DRINKING WATER RESERVOIRS: TURBIDITY APPORTIONMENT1

ABSTRACT: The technique of i ndividual p article a nalysis conducted by s canning electron microscopy interfaced with a utomated X ‐ray microanalysis (IPA/SAX) was used to characterize suspended particulate matter in New York City's drinking water reservoirs and their tributaries. The study covered a two year period and involved analyses of more than 300 samples. The particle cross sectional area per unit volume (PAV), or area concentration, was measured to account for the observed turbidity, a representation of light scattering property of the studied medium. A simple linear model with a nearly zero intercept was able to explain more than 85 percent of the variation in the measured turbidity. Moreover, the particle assemblage was categorized into generic particle types with distinctive geochemical or geological origins. Thus, PAV compositions in terms of particle types could be apportioned into turbidity components based on the model. Inorganic tripton, dominated by aluminosilicate (clay) and silicate of nonbiological nature, was found to be the major turbidity causing constituent in most cases. With the exception of one reservoir where organic detritus was significant, the predicted inorganic particle turbidity agreed with the measured turbidity within experimental error.     

AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH TOWARDS UNDERSTANDING ECOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO DAM REMOVAL: THE MANATAWNY CREEK STUDY1

ABSTRACT: Dam removal has been proposed as an effective method of river restoration, but few integrative studies have examined ecological responses to the removal of dams. In 1999, we initiated an interdisciplinary study to determine ecological responses to the removal of a 2 m high dam on lower Manatawny Creek in southeastern Pennsylvania. We used an integrative monitoring program to assess the physical, chemical, and biological responses to dam removal. Following removal in 2000, increased sediment transport has led to major changes in channel form in the former impoundment and downstream reaches. Water quality did not change markedly following removal, probably because of the impoundment's short hydraulic residence time (less than two hours at base flow) and infrequent temperature stratification. When the impoundment was converted to a free flowing reach, the composition of the benthic macroinvertebrate and fish assemblages in this portion of Manatawny Creek shifted dramatically from lentic to lotic taxa. Some fish species inhabiting the free flowing reach downstream from the dam were negatively affected by large scale sediment transport and habitat alteration following dam removal, but this appears to be a short term response. Based on our observations and experiences in this study, we provide a list of issues to evaluate when considering future dam removals.     

IMPROVING AQUATIC HABITAT CONDITIONS OVER TIME WHILE PRODUCING WOOD PRODUCTS: AN EXAMINATION OF OPTIONS1

ABSTRACT: A land management activity scheduling model that can perform a multi-period, simultaneous evaluation of aquatic habitat quality and commodity production goals was used to identify alternatives which would allow the improvement of aquatic habitat conditions over time, while producing wood products. The scheduling model has the ability to use stream sediment index levels, stream temperature index levels, and equivalent clearcut acres (ECA) levels as primary goals. A secondary goal imbedded in the model is the achievement of an even-flow of timber harvest volume, and a tertiary goal is the achievement of maximum efficiency (maximum net present value). The scheduling model utilizes a heuristic programming technique (Tabu search) to guide the selection of timber harvests and road standards. A 14,643 acre case study watershed in eastern Oregon is used to illustrate several policy scenarios. Activities considered include: clearcutting and partial cutting; cable, skyline, ground-based, and helicopter logging; road obliteration; requiring lower truck tire pressures on forest roads; and tree planting in riparian areas. The scheduling model produced land management plans which were spatially and temporally feasible over ten ten-year time periods. Stream temperature was shown to be dramatically reduced if tree planting is performed in all riparian areas, regardless of whether harvesting activities occurred, and including meadows and forested areas where shade density is low. Timber harvest volume levels decreased 31 to 43 percent, and net present value levels decreased 36 to 46 percent, from an unconstrained case, when any of the following occurred: ECA was constrained to 15 percent, sediment index levels were required to decrease by 1 percent per decade, or temperature levels were constrained to “no harvest” levels. The use of a heuristic programming technique is a departure from traditional techniques that are commonly used in management plan development. Yet the heuristic technique allows the inclusion of complex management goals, many of which may be prohibited when using more traditional mathematical programming techniques. In addition, decision variables which require spatial information, requiring them to take on integer or non-linear representations, can be accounted for without realizing the limitations of the traditional techniques.     

Accumulation of 14C-trinitrotoluene and related nonextractable (bound) residues in Eisenia fetida

To determine if trinitrotoluene (TNT) forms nonextractable residues in earthworms and to measure the relative degree of accumulation as compared to TNT and its deaminated metabolites, Eisenia fetida was exposed to ¹⁴C-TNT using dermal contact to filter paper or exposure to soil. Nonextractable residues made up 32-68% of total body burden depending on exposure media and depuration time. Parent TNT accounted for less than 3% of radioactivity, while ADNTs accounted for 7-38%. Elimination half-lives were 61-120 h for TNT, ADNTs, and DANTs, which was significantly lower than the half-lives found for nonextractable residues, 201-240 h. However, over 80% of the nonextractable residue was solubilized using weak acid (pH 2). Based on our findings that TNT accumulation occurs primarily as nonextractable residues, which have a longer half-life, and that nonextractable residues can be solubilized, we propose that nonextractable residues could be used as a selective biomarker for assessing TNT contamination.     

Evaporative mass transfer behavior of a complex immiscible liquid

A series of laboratory experiments was conducted with a multiple-component immiscible liquid, collected from the Picillo Farm Superfund Site in Rhode Island, to examine liquid-vapor mass-transfer behavior. The immiscible liquid, which comprises solvents, oils, pesticides, PCBs, paint sludges, explosives, and other compounds, was characterized using gas chromatography and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to determine mole fractions of selected constituents. Batch experiments were conducted to evaluate equilibrium phase-partitioning behavior. Two sets of air-stripping column studies were conducted to examine the mass-transfer dynamics of five selected target compounds present in the immiscible-liquid mixture. One set of column experiments was designed to represent a system with free-phase immiscible liquid present; the other was designed to represent a system with a residual phase of immiscible liquid. Initial elution behavior of all target components generally appeared to be ideal for both systems, as the initial vapor-phase concentrations were similar to vapor-phase concentrations measured for the batch experiment and those estimated using Raoult's law (incorporating the immiscible-liquid composition data). Later-stage removal of 1,2-dichlorobenzene appeared to be rate limited for the columns containing free-phase immiscible liquid and no porous medium. Conversely, evaporative mass transfer appeared to be ideal throughout the experiment conducted with immiscible liquid distributed relatively uniformly as a residual phase within a sandy porous medium.     

An Urban Diffusion Simulation Model For Carbon Monoxide

A relatively simple Gaussian-type diffusion simulation model for calculating urban carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations as a function of local meteorology and the distribution of traffic is described. The model can be used in two ways: (1) in the synoptic mode, in which hourly concentrations at one or many receptor points are calculated from historical or forecast traffic and meteorological data; and (2) in the climatological mode, in which concentration frequency distributions are calculated on the basis of long-term sequences of input data. For model evaluation purposes, an extensive field study involving meteorological and air-quality measurements was conducted during November-December 1970 in San Jose, Calif., which has an automated network to provide traffic data throughout the central business district. Model refinements made on the basis of the data from this experimental program include the addition of a street-canyon submodel to compensate for the important aerodynamic effects of buildings on CO concentrations at streetside receptors. The magnitude of these effects was underscored by the concentrations measured on opposite sides of the street in San Jose, which frequently differed by a factor of two or more. Evaluation of the revised model has shown that calculated and observed concentration frequency distributions for street-canyon sites are in good agreement. Hour-average predictions are well correlated with observations (correlation coefficient of about 0.6 to 0.7), and about 80 percent of the calculated values are within 3 ppm of the observed hour-average concentrations, which ranged as high as 16 ppm.