title: Upwind impacts of ammonia from an intensive poultry unit.
abstract: This study investigated potential ammonia impacts on a sand dune nature reserve 600 m upwind of an intensive poultry unit. Ammonia concentrations and total nitrogen deposition were measured over a calendar year. A series of ammonia and nitrogen exposure experiments using dune grassland species were conducted in controlled manipulations and in the field. Ammonia emissions from the intensive poultry unit were detected up to 2.8 km upwind, contributing to exceedance of critical levels of ammonia 800 m upwind and exceedance of critical loads of nitrogen 2.8 km upwind. Emissions contributed 30% of the total N load in parts of the upwind conservation site. In the nitrogen exposure experiments, plants showed elevated tissue nitrogen contents, and responded to ammonia concentrations and nitrogen deposition loads observed in the conservation site by increasing biomass. Estimated long-term impacts suggest an increase in the soil carbon pool of 9% over a 50-year timescale.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Bangor, Environment Centre Wales, Deiniol Road, Bangor LL57 2UW, UK. LJ@ceh.ac.uk
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Nizam
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Reynolds
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bareham
authors.forename: E R B
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Oxley
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D000641:Ammonia / Q000032:analysis*; D000822:Animal Husbandry; D000818:Animals; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D011200:Poultry
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D000641:Ammonia
keywords: Agriculture; Air pollution; Chicken farm; Dune grassland; Nitrogen deposition