Overview
Atmospheric pollutants from natural and anthropic sources, such as heavy metals or nutrients like nitrogen (N), are deposited in terrestrial ecosystems through wet or dry deposition, having adverse impacts on ecosystem and human health. Bryomonitoring, environmental monitoring using bryophytes (mosses) is used in the International Cooperative Programme on Effects of Air Pollution on Natural Vegetation and Crops (ICP Vegetation) to assess atmospheric deposition of heavy metals in Europe. Bryomonitoring, rarely used in Canada so far, offers a cheap and easy complement to traditional air and precipitation monitoring. The project aims at evaluating atmospheric deposition of pollutants across New Brunswick using bryomonitoring and contribute to the first Canadian submission to the ICP Vegetation initiative. The goals are to 1) map atmospheric deposition of pollutants, 2) identify polluted and pristine areas with a focus on Protected Natural Areas, 3) improve our understanding of long-range vs. local sources, 4) establish baseline data for temporal trends, and 5) contribute to a developing national network. About 100 sites will be sampled on a grid (25x37.5 km) throughout New Brunswick and prioritizing areas with a conservation status using the ICP Vegetation protocol. Sites will avoid human disturbances and will include target moss species (Pleurozium schreberi or Hylocomium splendens, both common in New Brunswick). Moss samples of these species will be collected (500 ml) and environmental variables measured (e.g., soil pH, canopy cover). Moss samples will be dried, ground, and elemental and mass spectrophotometry analysis will determine their N and heavy metal concentrations. We expect to produce a preliminary map of background deposition rates (2021) and to develop the first province-wide map of bryomonitoring in Canada (2022). The project will also develop an additional method for assessing atmospheric deposition and air quality in the province, especially in the PNA.
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Map of New Brunswick illustrating the sampling grid and all the sampling locations visited in 2021-2022! We are now processing all the samples in the lab and hope to get the first results soon.
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Our New Brunswick project was funded in 2021 and 2022 by New Brunswick Environmental Trust Fund !
Ressources
To know more about the Canadian Bryomonitoring initiative, visit their website at bryomonitoring.ca/
Their website contains details about the overarching goals of the projects, the moss species targeted, and how to sample and submit your mosses!
Their website contains details about the overarching goals of the projects, the moss species targeted, and how to sample and submit your mosses!