Spatial and temporal patterns of ozone in the high elevation ecosystems of the Colorado Rocky Mountains

Abstract:

Tropospheric ozone is regulated by the US EPA to protect human health and welfare. Because the precursors to ozone formation largely come from transportation and industrial activity, ozone has typically been thought of as an urban pollution problem. However, there is growing concern about increased ozone concentrations in rural areas. Surprisingly high ozone concentrations have been measured in the high elevation Rocky Mountain ecosystems in the Front Range of Colorado. The annual median ozone mixing ratios over the past decade at three high elevation monitoring stations ranged from 47 to 53 ppbv. The hourly ozone mixing ratio typically exceeds 100 ppbv at some point every year at these sites. The number of days where the ozone mixing ratio exceeded the current 8 hour US EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 75 ppb has ranged from 0 to 25 since 1987 at the monitoring site in Rocky Mountain National Park. A comparison with lower elevation sites suggests that ozone mixing ratios generally increase with elevation. In addition, the diurnal and seasonal variability of ozone decreases with elevation. Along an elevational gradient from the plains to the tundra, the tundra site had the highest median values and the least variability of any site. The seasonal pattern at these high elevation sites is also distinct as the maximum mixing ratios occur in the spring in contrast to the summer maximum typically observed in urban areas. While there have been relatively small changes in concentration in the measured data record going back a few decades, modeling suggests that ozone mixing ratios have almost doubled over the last one hundred years in Colorado. A plethora of studies has shown that elevated ozone damages foliage, with sensitive species showing effect at levels exceeding 35-40 ppbv. Since ozone levels in these high elevation ecosystems are clearly above that, we believe that they have been and will continue to be severely affected by elevated ozone. It is not well established which high elevation species are most sensitive to ozone, but the historical changes in ozone may have already altered ecosystem structure and function, such as species composition and carbon and nutrient cycling.