NRCS Alaska News

July 14, 2006

In this Issue:

Air Quality: Pollutant Basics

Global Climate Change Part II

Unique Properties of Lichens Presented in Workshop

Trails Technical Assistance Program Deadline Near

IT Questionnaire Posted on MY.NRCS

Personnel Actions

Air Quality: Pollutant Basics

Historically, as the Soil Conservation Service, we prided ourselves on our successes in enhancing and protecting our nation’s soil and water resources.  Today, as the Natural Resources Conservation Service, we have expanded our view to include enhancement and protection of not only soil and water resources but also our air, plant, animal and energy resources.  As we move forward into the 21st century, concern about our air resources is emerging as critical agricultural issue.  This article will define and discuss the most common agricultural air pollutants including ozone, volatile organic carbons, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide and lead. 

Ozone (O₃) is a gas composed of three oxygen atoms.  It is not usually emitted directly into the air, but at ground level is created by a chemical reaction between oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight. VOCs are released from burning fuel (gasoline, oil, wood coal and natural gas), solvents, paints glues and other products used at work or at home. Cars are an important source of VOCs.  VOCs include chemicals such as benzene, toluene, methylene chloride and methyl chloroform. VOCs are smog formers and can cause serious health problems such as cancer.

Ozone has the same chemical structure whether it occurs miles above the earth or at ground level and can be "good" or "bad," depending on its location in the atmosphere.  "Good" ozone occurs naturally in the stratosphere approximately 10 to 30 miles above the earth's surface and forms a layer that protects life on earth from the sun's harmful rays.  In the earth's lower atmosphere, ground-level ozone is considered "bad."   Motor vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions, gasoline vapors, chemical solvents and natural sources emit NO_x and VOC that help to form ozone.  Sunlight and hot weather cause ground-level ozone to form in harmful concentrations in the air.  As a result, it is known as a summertime air pollutant.  Many urban areas tend to have high levels of "bad" ozone, but even rural areas are also subject to increased ozone levels because wind carries ozone and the pollutants that form it hundreds of miles away from their original sources.  Detrimental health effects from ozone include breathing problems, reduced lung function, asthma, eye irritation, stuffy nose and reduced resistance to colds and other infections.  Ozone can damage plants and trees as well as have detrimental effects on rubber and fabric products. 

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is a smog-forming chemical that is produced from the burning of gasoline, natural gas, coal and oil. Cars are an important source of NO₂.  Harmful health effects include lung damage and illnesses of breathing passages and lungs (respiratory system). NO₂ is an ingredient of acid rain (acid aerosols), which can damage trees and lakes as well as damaging the stone used on buildings, statues and monuments.    

Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless gas that is formed when carbon in fuel (gasoline, natural gas, coal and oil) is not burned completely.  Carbon monoxide reduces ability of blood to bring oxygen to body cells and tissues; cells and tissues need oxygen to work. Carbon monoxide may be particularly hazardous to people who have heart or circulatory (blood vessel) problems and people who have damaged lungs or breathing passages. 

"Particulate matter," also known as particle pollution or PM, is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets. Particle pollution is made up of a number of components, including acids (such as nitrates and sulfates), organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles.  PM in the form of dust, smoke or soot often comes from the burning of wood, diesel and other fuels, industrial plants, agriculture (plowing, burning off fields) and unpaved roads.  PM is grouped into two categories, course particles (PM 10) and fine particles (PM 2.5).  PM 10 or coarse particles are those found near roadways and dusty industries, range in size from 2.5 to 10 micrometers in diameter.  PM 2.5 or fine particles are those found in smoke and haze, have diameters smaller than 2.5 micrometers. These particles can be directly emitted from sources such as forest fires, or they can form when gases emitted from power plants, industries and automobiles react in the air.  Particulates are the main source of haze that reduces visibility.  Breathing in particulate matter can cause nose and throat irritation, lung damage, bronchitis and early death.  Ashes, soots, smokes and dusts can dirty and discolor structures and other property, including clothes and furniture.

Sulfur Dioxide (SO₂) is produced from the burning of coal and oil, especially high-sulfur coal from the Eastern United States and industrial processes (paper, metals).  SO₂ is an ingredient in acid rain (acid aerosols), which can damage trees and lakes and the stone used on buildings, statues and monuments.  Exposure to SO₂ may cause breathing problems and can cause permanent damage to lungs.

Anther air pollutant is lead.  Major sources of lead in the air are leaded gasoline, paint, smelters and manufacturers of lead storage batteries. There are many ways in which humans are exposed to lead: through air, drinking water, food, contaminated soil, deteriorating paint, and dust. Airborne lead enters the body when an individual breathes or swallows lead particles or dust once it has settled.  Lead can cause brain and other nervous system damage especially in children, digestive problems and cancer in animals.

Conservation practices can help to reduce air pollutants both directly and indirectly.  Practices such as conservation cover crops can directly reduce particulate matter discharges.  Conservation tillage indirectly reduces air quality pollutants by helping to reduce the amount of fuel used during crop production.

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Global Climate Change Part II

(This is the second of two articles for NRCS Alaska News. Part one highlighted facts on climate change. Part two follows up with NRCS’ goals in addressing one factor involved with global warming, greenhouse gases.)

Carbon is more abundant in the atmosphere today than at any time during most of Earth’s history. The same is true for methane and nitrous oxide.  The source of this carbon is hard to dismiss when you look at the natural fluctuations and you consider human activity on the Earth.  This is seen on the “famous Hockey Stick Graph” that charts global temperatures over the past millennium.

Carbon sequestration is defined as the process of removing atmospheric carbon and tying it up in carbon sinks. The mitigation options in forestry and agriculture have received much attention.  Forest and agricultural lands in the U.S. currently comprise a net carbon sink of almost 830 million metric tonnes of CO₂.  (Net carbon sink includes the loss of carbon from decomposition and respiration).  Of this amount, 90 percent of the sequestration currently takes place in the forests because the agricultural sector is actually a net emitter of greenhouse gases if you include CH₄ and N₂0. 

According to a report from EPA, there are five plausible options for sequestration of carbon and reduction of greenhouse gases.  They are afforestation, (planting of trees on land that does not have a historical forest cover), forest management, agricultural soil carbon sequestration, biofuels offsets (fossil fuel mitigation from crop production), and agricultural CH₄ and N₂0 mitigation. 

Of all the treatments, agricultural soil carbon sequestration and forest management have the largest potential for early adoption.  If cost of implementation is factored into the potential for sequestration, forest management becomes the most cost effective of all scenarios, but forest management has the potential to lower CO₂ reduction by only 375 tonnes per year.   If the goal is 900 tonnes per year, then forestry activities have to be combined with agricultural soil carbon improvement and biofuels offset.  Nine-hundred tonnes is the estimated sequestration that the U.S. could attain in the next 75 years.

Treatments that landowners can apply are some of the same practices that NRCS promotes and prescribes. If a conservation practice can be used to sequester carbon, it will state it in its purpose. Increasing soil carbon through conservation tillage, no-till practices and other associated practices has the potential not only to sequester carbon but also to reduce erosion, reduce fertilizer inputs and reduce pesticide use.  The value of each type of system is easily seen by looking at the carbon sequestration model COMET-VR http://www.cometvr.colostate.edu/ .

The reduction of CH₄ and N₂0 can be accomplished by the use of manure management systems, methane digesters and other treatments that capture these gases and either return them to the soil or produce other products such as energy.

Biofuel offsets are the use of plants in the production of fuel. This type of treatment takes carbon from the air and transforms it into fuel by the use of plants and reduces a lesser amount of petroleum use. It’s a lesser amount since some petroleum is used in the production of biofuels.  If biofuels are combined with agricultural soil carbon sequestration offsets are much greater.

Forest management activities that result in faster biomass growth with an end result of maximum production and utilization of forest products increase the amount of carbon sequestered as compared to natural forest development which also sequesters carbon but at a slower rate. It also has a greater amount of natural decomposition due to natural thinning and potential for growth stagnation in heavily stocked stands.  These are moderately difficult to calculate but are easily adopted since the end results are often in line with forest owner’s economic objectives.

Afforestation has the greatest short term potential to reduce atmospheric carbon, but is limited to difficulties in changing land use and cover. Above ground biomass is easily measured, monitored and verified.  Because of the ease of verification, this technique is easily adapted to the sale and purchase of carbon credits.

Carbon offset credits can be sold and purchased in U.S. on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.  Current NRCS policy (GM 190-412) limits employee’s role in carbon credit brokering.  According to the Pew Foundation Report, the current cost of sequestering a tonne of carbon was on average $450.  This report states that this is essentially the same cost as emission reduction, but the interest in sequestration is due the ease of adoption and the additional benefits obtained. The Mercantile was last selling a tonne of carbon for $8.00.  The difference in the price is due to items like brokerage fees, cost of monitoring and certification, surety ( i.e. if the forest burns up, additional forest need to be kept as carbon insurance so your “carbon credit” doesn’t loose its value) and market conditions.

This very ingenious method for selling carbon was first used with the Clean Air Act. EPA allowed for businesses to avoid/reduce the cost of decreasing their emissions by reducing emission anywhere the cost was lowest.  For example if company X was mandated to reduce their SO₂ emissions and their reduction cost was $1,000, they could find company Z that could achieve the same emission reduction for $500. Then Y could pay for Z’s emission reductions and still meet their original mandate.  This formula was a great public-private success stories. The end result was immediate reduction of SO₂. This allowed company Y to get more time to reduce their costly emissions as technology developed or they waited for the mandates to change. The main difference between the Clean Air Act SO₂ and the present day carbon sequestration is that atmospheric carbon is not currently mandated for reduction.  This has served to keep the market price low for carbon offset credits.

Global climate change is real, and whether you believe the cause is mankind’s activities or not, as NRCS employee we can present conservation practices and programs to landowners knowing that many of our practices, when applied, will reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere.  In Alaska we are limited by climate and our pristine ecological systems on what can be attained through carbon sequestration, but knowing that each tonne of carbon sequestered has a potential for global impact should allow us to address global climate change one practice at a time.  As I ask my kids the question, “How do you eat an elephant?” they always reply, “one bite at a time.”

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Unique Properties of Lichens Presented in Workshop

NRCS Range Specialist Karin Sonnen recently taught participants about the amazing forms of life known as lichens during the “Lichen Walk” hosted by the Carl Wynn Nature Center in Homer.

“Plants are the basis for all life on Earth, as they take water, carbon dioxide and sunlight and make sugar,” Karin told the participants. “Lichens do the same thing, but they get everything they need from the air.  They don’t need rainfall, as long as they have fog.  They are really unique.” 

Participants learned about the three main categories of lichens, their life cycle and physiology, and their many historical and current uses.  Samples of the various forms of lichens were passed around and discussed, followed by a trail walk where participants found many lichens they had never thought to notice before.  Lichens are found virtually everywhere, from tree bark to rocks, on wooden trails and antlers, and in mossy shaded areas and open disturbed areas. 

Some Lichen Facts: 

• Scottish tweed traditionally gets its colors from lichen dyes

• Native people from the Pacific Northwest used a weave of lichens and bark to make clothing, a sample of which can be found in the Smithsonian Institute

• Lichens have been used to treat tuberculosis

• The Swedes made commercial beer from lichens

• Scandinavian reindeer herders used the deadly “wolf” lichen to poison wolves

• In Japan, studies are underway to treat tumors with “lettuce” lichen

• Lichens are used to monitor air pollution in many areas around the country by making presence/absence maps and comparing them over years of time 

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Trails Technical Assistance Program Deadline Near

Application letters are due August 1, 2006, for the National Park Service Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) Program. RTCA staff help with partnership-building to achieve community-set goals of natural resource conservation and outdoor recreation projects including multi-use trails, single-purpose trails, greenways, water trails/blueways, river corridor conservation, land protection, and park planning.   The program also helps with organizational development, assessing resources, developing concept plans, public education and participation, and identifying potential sources of funding. RTCA does not provide direct grants. Project partners may be federal agencies, state or local agencies, tribes, non-profit organizations, or citizens’ groups. RTCA assistance is for one year and may be renewed for a second year if warranted.  For further information about RTCA visit http://www.nps.gov/rtca.

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IT Questionnaire Posted on MY.NRCS

 A customer satisfaction questionnaire related to IT support and IT infrastructure is posted on MY.NRCS.  Chief Knight encourages all employees to participate.  The survey closes July 28.

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Personnel Actions

Departures

• Michael Jimmy, tribal outreach, ACES, Bethel

 Acting Authorities

• Ann Rippy, resource conservationist, is the acting district conservationist in Fairbanks until the position is filled.

• Customers in Dillingham should contact the Homer field office until further notice.

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