The St. Louis Ozone Garden Project Kelley Belina Jack Fishman Center for Environmental Sciences Saint Louis University St. Louis, Missouri A Presentation for the St. Louis Earth Day Symposium. Powder Valley Nature Center. March 19, 2013.
What is an Ozone Garden? An educational garden consisting of wild and agricultural plants that are sensitive to ground level ozone (O 3 ) air pollution Where local weather, O 3, and leaf injury data are collected
Project Goals Public outreach and education Demonstrate effects of O 3 pollution on natural and agricultural plants Expand awareness of ground level O 3 air pollution Data collection and research Collecting O 3, weather, and leaf damage data Comparative analysis between sites and across years Eventual Goal Establish a network of Ozone Gardens around St. Louis and in other locations
Background NASA Publication: Ozone Induced Foliar Injury Field Guide http://science edu.larc.nasa.gov/ozonegarden/pdf/bioguide final 3_15_11.pdf Ozone gardens in Great Smokey Mountains National Park, at Penn State Arboretum s Air Quality Learning Center Research and breeding for ozone tolerant crops: USDA ARS/NC State, USDA ARS/Univ of IL
Ground Level Ozone (O 3 ) A secondary pollutant formed by nitrogen oxides [NO+NO 2 ] and volatile organic compounds [VOCs] from fossil fuel burning Not the good ozone in the stratosphere, protecting earth from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation Harmful to humans: causes respiratory problems, decreased lung capacity, and aggravated asthma
Ozone and Plants Ozone is harmful to plants More susceptible to diseases and insects Decreased ability to produce and store food Less production of flowers and seeds = reduced reproductive capabilities = yield decreases in crop species Ozone season and growing season are the same Snap beans after exposure to elevated ozone for one day (left) and after nine days
Ozone and Plants Many plants show specific O 3 symptoms Dark stippling and/or leaf discoloration = loss of photosynthetic ability Occurs on top side of leaves, in between the veins Premature defoliation Leaf cell death Sensitivity varies between and within species Browning on potato leaves Ozone injury in a pumpkin leaf Stipple on black cherry Photos from USDA ARS and Penn State: http://www.ars.usda.gov/main/docs.htm?docid=12462; http://arboretum.psu.edu/research/air.html
Ozone and Plants Ozone enters plants through pores on leaves called stomata In the leaf O 3 reacts with other chemicals The resulting reactive molecules cause a variety of problems within a leaf, including stippling and cell death Provided by H. Neufeld; from NASA s Ozone Induced Foliar Injury Field Guide Stomata open and close in response to environmental conditions such as daylight, temperature, humidity, and CO 2 concentrations; many plants close their stomata to prevent high water loss during periods of hot temperatures (above 95 F), low humidity, and drought
Ozone and Plants Why is this important? Wild plant conservation Milkweed is the monarch butterfly caterpillar s primary food source Decreasing the amount of healthy milkweed will affect monarch butterfly populations
Ozone and Plants Why is this important? Agriculture Globally, the loss of value of all crops to ozone ranges between $14 $26 billion (Royal Society, 2008, RS Policy Document, London, 15/08) The cost of ozone to the soybean farming community in the U.S. likely exceeds $1 billion (Fishman et al., 2010, Atmos. Environ., 44, 2248 2256) Ambient ozone injury to sensitive and tolerant snap beans Ozone injury on lettuce, tomato, and soybean Photos from USDA ARS (see previous slide) and International Cooperative Programme on Effects of Air Pollution on Natural Vegetation and Crops: http://icpvegetation.ceh.ac.uk/research/ozone.html
2012: First Ozone Garden Living exhibit at the Saint Louis Science Center s McDonnell Planetarium in Forest Park Plants Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) Tall Milkweed (Asclepias exaltata) Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) Snap Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) O 3 sensitive and tolerant Source Dr. John Skelly, Penn State Dr. John Skelly, Penn State Dr. John Skelly, Penn State Dr. Kent Burkey, USDA ARS/NC State Planted May 5, 2012 September 11, 2012
2012 Ozone Garden O 3 monitor and weather station from the GO3 Project http://go3project.com Laptop and weather receiver located inside Planetarium communications room Ozone data transmitted to laptop using system designed by SLU
2012 Ozone Garden Summer 2012 in St. Louis Temperature Fourth warmest on record Hottest since 1936 60 days of 90 F or higher 21 days of 100 F or higher 11 days of 105 F or higher Ozone Consistently well above 40 ppb throughout June, July, August Average daily maximums generally between 70 80 ppb 7 days with values over 100 ppb
2012 Ozone Garden Ozone levels at McDonnell Planetarium Hard drive replaced New communication system installed May 21 September 30 Red line = 40 ppb, the threshold when foliar injury begins to occur in many plants
2012 Ozone Garden OzoneandTemperatureMeasurementsatSt.Lo uis OzoneGarde n: June JulyHeatWave:June28 July7,2012 RecordHighT (atstl) 146ppb July2,1230 Tenconsecu vedayswith>100 FhighT;2 nd longeststreakinst.louis June28 th 108 highesteverrecordedinjune(109 FatOzoneGarden) 146ppbreadingonJuly2 nd canbetracedtowindshi fromeast
2012 Ozone Garden Troubleshooting in the garden Irrigation system Pill bugs and other critters High temperatures and low humidity 06/26/12 Perennials: Common milkweed, tall milkweed, cutleaf coneflower Slow growth expected first year Often do not exhibit O 3 symptoms first year Annuals: Snap beans Low soil nitrogen Pill bugs 06/27/12 Garden still grew well. Except no O 3 symptoms in June, July, August 09/11/12
2012 Ozone Garden September, 2012 Foliar O 3 damage on common milkweed and snap beans Lower temperatures and rainfall Ozone still generally exceeded 40 ppb Common Milkweed With lower temperatures and higher humidity, stomata likely open and O 3 entering plant 09/27/12 Snap Beans Late season successful planting, transplanted two week old plants in mid August 09/18/12 09/18/12 Ozone sensitive (left) and tolerant snap beans
2012 Ozone Garden Snap beans
2013 St. Louis Ozone Gardens Saint Louis Science Center, Forest Park Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC), Belleville IL Grant s Farm, St. Louis County St. Louis Science Center Grant s Farm SWIC
2013 St. Louis Ozone Gardens New plants in the gardens Soybeans, U of IL Potatoes, La Chipper variety Yellow crownbeard, wild perennial Database at SLU s CES New national sites NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD Harvard University/Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge, MA
Thank you! Kelley Belina, Project Manager, kbelina@slu.edu Jack Fishman, Director of CES, jfishma2@slu.edu