Abstract
In 1994, the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) and Forest Health Monitoring programs of the U.S. Forest Service implemented a national ozone (O
3) biomonitoring program designed to address specific questions about the area and percent of forest land subject to levels of O
3 pollution that may negatively affect the forest ecosystem. This is the first and only nationally consistent effort to monitor O
3 stress on the forests of the United States. This report provides background information on O
3 and its effects on trees and ecosystems, and describes the rationale behind using sensitive bioindicator plants to detect O
3 stress and assess the risk of probable O
3 impact. Also included are a description of field methods, analytic techniques, estimation procedures, and how to access, use and interpret the ozone bioindicator attributes and data outputs such as the national ozone risk map.
Keywords
air quality,
bioindicator species,
biomonitoring,
forest health,
ozone,
ozone sensitive,
risk assessment,
spatial interpolation
Citation
Smith, Gretchen C.; Coulston, John W.; O''Connell, Barbara M. 2008. Ozone bioindicators and forest health: a guide to the evaluation, analysis, and interpretation of the ozone injury data in the Forest Inventory and Analysis Program. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-34. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agricluture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station. 100 p.
