Abstract

Ozone-induced vegetation injury may be prevalent within metropolitan areas in the southeastern United States. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between ozone exposure and potential foliar injury within the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan statistical area (MSA). The main methods involve calculating seasonal ozone exposure at 11 monitoring stations in the Atlanta MSA for 2000-2005 and measuring ozone-induced visible foliar injury in the eastern portion of the MSA in August 2004. Ozone exposure within the Atlanta MSA probably was high enough to injure only highly sensitive species, and the 2004 survey did reveal foliar injury to highly sensitive species.

pdf