Photo by Joe Klementovich
We study how forests and streams respond to changes in the chemistry of the atmosphere, particularly declines in air pollution brought about by federal restrictions on emissions. Prior to the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, northern forests experienced decades of acid rain, which stripped calcium and other key nutrients from forest soils. We study the legacy of acid rain on forest processes like vegetation growth, and we study the interactive effects of recovery from acid rain under the stressors of climate change. The forests at Hubbard Brook are also affected by increases in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and by changes in the deposition of nutrients such as nitrogen and calcium.
