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National Park Service U. S. Forest Service Bureau of Land Management U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service

National Park Service U. S. Forest Service Bureau of Land Management U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Problem Statement. Problem Statement.

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National Park Service U. S. Forest Service Bureau of Land Management U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service

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  1. National Park Service U. S. Forest Service Bureau of Land Management U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service

  2. Problem Statement Problem Statement Decades of research and monitoring results confirm natural resources on federally managed lands in California are being adversely impacted by ozone air pollution.

  3. Problem Statement Problem Statement • Ozone injury to ponderosa and Jeffrey pines has been extensively documented in national parks and forests in California, including: • 100% of pines sampled in the San Bernadino Mts. • 93% of pines in some areas of Sequoia National Park • 88% of pines in some areas of Yosemite National Park

  4. Chlorosis- bleaching or yellowing of pigment Stipple - accumulations of pigment; often small dots; visible on upper leaf surface Fleck - cell death in palisade layer; visible only on upper surface Bi-facial necrosis - cell death in palisade and spongy mesophyll; visible on both surfaces Visible Ozone Injury Symptoms PonderosaPine Red Alder Quaking Aspen Blue Elderberry

  5. Ozone damage on giant sequoia seedling

  6. Healthy ponderosa pine (right) vs. Ozone damaged ponderosa pine (left)

  7. PhysiologicalEffects of Ozone • Reductions in photosynthetic rate • Early needle loss • Diminished annual ring growth • Decreases in radial growth • Changes in stand composition • More vulnerable to mortality from insects and diseases Plants are more sensitive than humans to ozone. Air quality standards are not protective of vegetation.

  8. Injury vs. Exposure

  9. Sierra and Sequoia NF FPM Plots None Slight Moderate Severe Very Severe

  10. Primary Causes of Tree DeathSierra and Sequoia National Forests (1977 – 2000) FPM Ozone Trend Plots Primary Cause of Death Percent of Dead Trees Ozone 36.5 Bark beetles, wood borers 27.9 Fire damage 15.4 Broken top 9.6 Dwarf mistletoe 5.8

  11. Problem Statement Problem Statement The extent and severity of ozone damage to federal natural resources in California is in conflict with Congressional direction to FLMs to sustain healthy ecosystems.

  12. FLM Responsibilities • Clean Air Act • FLM has “an affirmative responsibility” to protect resources that may be adversely affected by a change in air quality • Wilderness Act • Directs FLMs to administer wilderness areas “in such a manner as will leave them unimpaired for future use and enjoyment as wilderness”

  13. FLM Responsibilities • Organic Acts • NPS Organic Act: ... manage parks to “leave them unimpairedfor…future generations” • National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act: ... maintain “the biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health of the [Refuge] System… for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.”

  14. FLM Responsibilities • National Forest Management Act: “National Forests are ecosystems and their management for goods and services requires an awareness and consideration of the interrelationships among plants, animals, soil, water, air, and other environmental factors within such ecosystems.”

  15. State Responsibilities • SIPs for Nonattainment Areas • New non-attainment area State Implementation Plans are being developed for: • Ozone • PM2.5 • Regional Haze • Control measures will result in lower Ozone concentrations and hopefully a sigh of relief for vegetaton

  16. FLMs Responsibilities Conformity Determination NEPA Documentation process PSD Permit Review New Tools Collaboration with Research and Regulatory Agencies

  17. FIA Ozone Bio- monitoring sites in California – 2002 (Red dots are positive for ozone)

  18. Questions?

  19. Interagency Participation The FLM agencies have been working to develop nationally consistent criteria and guidance to evaluate air pollution impacts to natural resources on all Federal lands. Initial criteria and guidance is published in the FLAG Phase I Report: http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/Permits/flag/ We hope to build off of the FLAG effort by working together to inform regulators and the public of the serious threat of ozone pollution to our Federal natural resources in California.

  20. Current 1 hr ozone standard non-attainment areas in CA Proposed new 8 hr ozone non-attainment areas in CA (State and EPA)

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