Tropospheric Ozone In A Mountain Forest Area: Spatial Distribution And Its Relation With Meteorology And Emission Sources

Biological injuries to forest ecosystems in two lateral valleys of Valtellina (Italy) have been\r\nstudied. The selected areas are characterized by different forest novel decline symptoms and\r\nozone concentration levels. Analyses of meteorological and air quality data collected by fixed\r\nand mobile stations located in the two valleys are presented. Ozone concentration has been\r\nmeasured both by passive samplers and continues analyzers and the ozone vertical gradient in\r\none valley has been determined. In order to investigate the relation between emission sources,\r\nambient ozone levels and plant biological injuries, a modeling research project has been\r\nstarted. As preliminary results the wind field obtained by the application of two diagnostic\r\nmeteorological models, MINERVE and CALMET, and the computation of the biogenic\r\nemissions are presented. Some examples of spatial distribution and temporal trend of the most\r\nimportant pollutants emitted by plants are discussed.