Potential Impacts of Wildfires on Soil and Water Chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, California

Potential Impacts of Wildfires on Soil and Water Chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, California PDF Author: Supasiri Rittiron
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Dissertations, Academic
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Increase in contaminants in soil caused by wildfires is poorly understood, despite it being a significant source of pollutants to receiving waters and reservoirs (Abraham et al., 2017). This study assesses the potential longer-term impacts of a small-scale wildfire that occurred in September 2018 on soil and leachate chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County, California. Soils were collected from five sites within the burned and unburned areas in March 2019, following the post-fire runoff, for sediment and total element analyses. Batch leaching tests were conducted at different temperatures to determine the extent of size partitioning and mobilization of the major (Na, Mg, Al, K, Ca, and Fe) and minor/trace (Mn, Cu, Zn, Cr, and As) elements in order to understand solute transport as a result of changes in chemical bonding and physical characteristics of the soils. The results showed that burned soils were relatively finer than the unburned soils. For soil chemistry, the burned and unburned soils had similar composition of major and minor elements with the average range of the four interested minor elements being between 105 and 1,250 ppm, except As (4 ppm). Nevertheless, the batch leaching tests showed burned soils had significantly higher concentrations for some elements (e.g. Mg and Ca by more than six-fold and sevenfold, respectively, compared to that of the unburned soils within four-week period). These results potentially imply that size partitioning and the rate of the elements released into the water, could be impacted. Chromium amended experiments showed the opposite trend with Cr(VI) concentrations decreasing over time for both burned and non-burned soils. The was likely due to sorption of Cr(VI). These results would be valuable for predicting the fate of the contaminants and broader impacts could also include more effective pre- and post-fire mitigation plans.

Potential Impacts of Wildfires on Soil and Water Chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, California

Potential Impacts of Wildfires on Soil and Water Chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, California PDF Author: Supasiri Rittiron
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Dissertations, Academic
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Increase in contaminants in soil caused by wildfires is poorly understood, despite it being a significant source of pollutants to receiving waters and reservoirs (Abraham et al., 2017). This study assesses the potential longer-term impacts of a small-scale wildfire that occurred in September 2018 on soil and leachate chemistry in the San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County, California. Soils were collected from five sites within the burned and unburned areas in March 2019, following the post-fire runoff, for sediment and total element analyses. Batch leaching tests were conducted at different temperatures to determine the extent of size partitioning and mobilization of the major (Na, Mg, Al, K, Ca, and Fe) and minor/trace (Mn, Cu, Zn, Cr, and As) elements in order to understand solute transport as a result of changes in chemical bonding and physical characteristics of the soils. The results showed that burned soils were relatively finer than the unburned soils. For soil chemistry, the burned and unburned soils had similar composition of major and minor elements with the average range of the four interested minor elements being between 105 and 1,250 ppm, except As (4 ppm). Nevertheless, the batch leaching tests showed burned soils had significantly higher concentrations for some elements (e.g. Mg and Ca by more than six-fold and sevenfold, respectively, compared to that of the unburned soils within four-week period). These results potentially imply that size partitioning and the rate of the elements released into the water, could be impacted. Chromium amended experiments showed the opposite trend with Cr(VI) concentrations decreasing over time for both burned and non-burned soils. The was likely due to sorption of Cr(VI). These results would be valuable for predicting the fate of the contaminants and broader impacts could also include more effective pre- and post-fire mitigation plans.

Fire in California's Ecosystems

Fire in California's Ecosystems PDF Author: Jan W. van Wagtendonk
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520961919
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 567

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Book Description
Fire in California’s Ecosystems describes fire in detail—both as an integral natural process in the California landscape and as a growing threat to urban and suburban developments in the state. Written by many of the foremost authorities on the subject, this comprehensive volume is an ideal authoritative reference tool and the foremost synthesis of knowledge on the science, ecology, and management of fire in California. Part One introduces the basics of fire ecology, including overviews of historical fires, vegetation, climate, weather, fire as a physical and ecological process, and fire regimes, and reviews the interactions between fire and the physical, plant, and animal components of the environment. Part Two explores the history and ecology of fire in each of California's nine bioregions. Part Three examines fire management in California during Native American and post-Euro-American settlement and also current issues related to fire policy such as fuel management, watershed management, air quality, invasive plant species, at-risk species, climate change, social dynamics, and the future of fire management. This edition includes critical scientific and management updates and four new chapters on fire weather, fire regimes, climate change, and social dynamics.

Forest Hydrology and Biogeochemistry

Forest Hydrology and Biogeochemistry PDF Author: Delphis F. Levia
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400713630
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 734

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Book Description
This international rigorously peer-reviewed volume critically synthesizes current knowledge in forest hydrology and biogeochemistry. It is a one-stop comprehensive reference tool for researchers and practitioners in the fields of hydrology, biogeoscience, ecology, forestry, boundary-layer meteorology, and geography. Following an introductory chapter tracing the historical roots of the subject, the book is divided into the following main sections: · Sampling and Novel Approaches · Forest Hydrology and Biogeochemistry by Ecoregion and Forest Type · Hydrologic and Biogeochemical Fluxes from the Canopy to the Phreatic Surface · Hydrologic and Biogeochemical Fluxes in Forest Ecosystems: Effects of Time, Stressors, and Humans The volume concludes with a final chapter that reflects on the current state of knowledge and identifies some areas in need of further research.

Ecosystems of California

Ecosystems of California PDF Author: Harold Mooney
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520278801
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 1008

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Book Description
This long-anticipated reference and sourcebook for CaliforniaÕs remarkable ecological abundance provides an integrated assessment of each major ecosystem typeÑits distribution, structure, function, and management. A comprehensive synthesis of our knowledge about this biologically diverse state, Ecosystems of California covers the state from oceans to mountaintops using multiple lenses: past and present, flora and fauna, aquatic and terrestrial, natural and managed. Each chapter evaluates natural processes for a specific ecosystem, describes drivers of change, and discusses how that ecosystem may be altered in the future. This book also explores the drivers of CaliforniaÕs ecological patterns and the history of the stateÕs various ecosystems, outlining how the challenges of climate change and invasive species and opportunities for regulation and stewardship could potentially affect the stateÕs ecosystems. The text explicitly incorporates both human impacts and conservation and restoration efforts and shows how ecosystems support human well-being. Edited by two esteemed ecosystem ecologists and with overviews by leading experts on each ecosystem, this definitive work will be indispensable for natural resource management and conservation professionals as well as for undergraduate or graduate students of CaliforniaÕs environment and curious naturalists.

Implications of the California Wildfires for Health, Communities, and Preparedness

Implications of the California Wildfires for Health, Communities, and Preparedness PDF Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309499909
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
California and other wildfire-prone western states have experienced a substantial increase in the number and intensity of wildfires in recent years. Wildlands and climate experts expect these trends to continue and quite likely to worsen in coming years. Wildfires and other disasters can be particularly devastating for vulnerable communities. Members of these communities tend to experience worse health outcomes from disasters, have fewer resources for responding and rebuilding, and receive less assistance from state, local, and federal agencies. Because burning wood releases particulate matter and other toxicants, the health effects of wildfires extend well beyond burns. In addition, deposition of toxicants in soil and water can result in chronic as well as acute exposures. On June 4-5, 2019, four different entities within the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held a workshop titled Implications of the California Wildfires for Health, Communities, and Preparedness at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at the University of California, Davis. The workshop explored the population health, environmental health, emergency preparedness, and health equity consequences of increasingly strong and numerous wildfires, particularly in California. This publication is a summary of the presentations and discussion of the workshop.

Southern California Coastal Water Research Project Annual Report

Southern California Coastal Water Research Project Annual Report PDF Author: Southern California Coastal Water Research Project
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Marine biology
Languages : en
Pages : 420

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Book Description


Landscape and Management Response to Wildfires in California

Landscape and Management Response to Wildfires in California PDF Author: Frederick Andrew Booker
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 494

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Book Description


Long-term Acid Deposition Effects on Soil and Water Chemistry in the Noland Divide Watershed, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA

Long-term Acid Deposition Effects on Soil and Water Chemistry in the Noland Divide Watershed, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA PDF Author: Meijun Cai
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Acid deposition
Languages : en
Pages : 163

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Book Description
Impacts of long-term acid deposition on soil and water chemistry are of particular concern in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM), receiving some of the highest acid deposition rates in the eastern United States and limited by inadequate acid buffering capacity. In the GRSM, the Noland Divide watershed (NDW) has been monitored since 1991 for water chemistries of precipitation, throughfall, soil, and stream. The impacts of long-term acidic deposition on stream water quality in the NDW were investigated through: 1) development of an ion input-output budget; 2) analysis of trends and seasonal patterns for major ions; 3) comparison of net export rates between baseflow and stormflow periods; and 4) characterization of soil chemistry and transport properties for various potential acid deposition scenarios. Between 1991 and 2006, throughfall deposition remained unchanged and consisted of 1,735 eq ha−1 yr−1 of SO4 2−, 863 eq ha−1 yr−1 of NO3−, and 284 eq ha−1 yr−1 of NH4 . Net retention of sulfate was estimated at 61 % being controlled by soil adsorption, and inorganic nitrogen was retained at 32% presumably due to plant uptake. Nitrogen retention increased by 44.30 eq ha−1 yr−1 over the study period. Besides deposition, soil acidity was increased by nitrification and precipitation-driven desorption of previously accumulated sulfate. To neutralize soil acidity, Ca2+, Mg2+ and Na+ were depleted from NDW by 77, 46 and 66 eq ha−1 yr−1, respectively. Due to the continuous addition of acidity, base saturation in soil was reduced to 4% at present. Mobilization of aluminum and other metals (Mn and Zn) may be enhanced by these geochemical processes, potentially causing toxic conditions to fish and other biota in the GRSM streams. Impacts of acidic deposition on streams were confirmed by measured stream pH below 6 and acid neutralizing capacity below 0.01 meq L−1. During stormflows pH and ANC depressions occurred primarily due to increases in sulfate transport, leading to episodic acidification events. This study provides new information on hydrological and biogeochemical processes that regulate stream acidification events in the southern Appalachian region, supporting improved management strategies for GRSM streams.

Ecosystems of California

Ecosystems of California PDF Author: Harold Mooney
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520962176
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 1009

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Book Description
This long-anticipated reference and sourcebook for California’s remarkable ecological abundance provides an integrated assessment of each major ecosystem type—its distribution, structure, function, and management. A comprehensive synthesis of our knowledge about this biologically diverse state, Ecosystems of California covers the state from oceans to mountaintops using multiple lenses: past and present, flora and fauna, aquatic and terrestrial, natural and managed. Each chapter evaluates natural processes for a specific ecosystem, describes drivers of change, and discusses how that ecosystem may be altered in the future. This book also explores the drivers of California’s ecological patterns and the history of the state’s various ecosystems, outlining how the challenges of climate change and invasive species and opportunities for regulation and stewardship could potentially affect the state’s ecosystems. The text explicitly incorporates both human impacts and conservation and restoration efforts and shows how ecosystems support human well-being. Edited by two esteemed ecosystem ecologists and with overviews by leading experts on each ecosystem, this definitive work will be indispensable for natural resource management and conservation professionals as well as for undergraduate or graduate students of California’s environment and curious naturalists.

Fire Effects Guide

Fire Effects Guide PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Biotic communities
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description