title: Growth losses in Swiss forests caused by ozone: epidemiological data analysis of stem increment of Fagus sylvatica L. and Picea abies Karst.
abstract: The estimate of growth losses by ozone exposure of forest trees is a significant part in current C sequestration calculations and will also be important in future modeling. It is therefore important to know if the relationship between ozone flux and growth reduction of young trees, used to derive a Critical Level for ozone, is also valid for mature trees. Epidemiological analysis of stem increment data from Fagus sylvatica L. and Picea abies Karst. observed in Swiss forest plots was used to test this hypothesis. The results confirm the validity of the flux-response relationship at least for beech and therefore enable estimating forest growth losses by ozone on a country-wide scale. For Switzerland, these estimates amount to 19.5% growth reduction for deciduous forests, 6.6% for coniferous forests and 11.0% for all forested areas based on annual ozone stomatal uptake during the time period 1991-2011.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Applied Plant Biology, Sandgrubenstrasse 25, CH-4124 Schönenbuch, Switzerland. Electronic address: sabine.braun@iap.ch.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.affiliation: Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Socinstrasse 57, CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schindler
authors.affiliation: Meteotest, Fabrikstrasse 14, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Beat
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rihm
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D029964:Fagus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D010126:Ozone / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D028222:Picea / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D063245:Plant Development / Q000187:drug effects; D018547:Plant Stems / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D013557:Switzerland; D014197:Trees / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D010126:Ozone
keywords: Critical level; Fagus sylvatica; Growth reduction; Ozone flux; Picea abies