Objective
Deposition of atmospheric ammonia (NH3) is a major cause of ecosystem change in Europe, with the magnitude of fluxes being intimately linked to climate, agricultural intensification, biomass productivity and plant community change. The current parametrisations are however still very uncertain, and require validation of the different model terms by both field and laboratory measurements. The aim of GRAMINAE is to investigate the dynamics of NH3 ecosystem-atmosphere exchange processes and their disturbance in the context of the EC Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Initiative (TERI). Bearing in mind the goals of TERI phase 2, and the links of seasonality to NH3 fluxes, the approach will be to focus on NH3 fluxes with cut grassland/meadow ecosystems in an Atlantic-Continental transect.
The specific objectives are:
1. To investigate the influence of European climate gradients on net NH3 fluxes with grasslands considering the interactions with land management, using micrometeorological methods in relation to ecosystem functioning;
2. To quantify the component processes contributing to net NH3 fluxes and their interaction with climate and management using controlled laboratory experiments;
3. To apply novel bioassays and micrometeorological techniques in the field to quantify the integration of component fluxes to net NH3 exchange at the canopy and landscape level;
4. To quantify the dynamics of NH3 fluxes in relation to canopy architecture/ecosystem functioning, NH3 pollution gradients and ecosystem control of atmospheric NH3 concentrations;
5. To quantify the interactions of NH3 fluxes with gas-to-particle conversion, noting effects on net atmospheric N budgets with ecosystems and aerosol formation;
6. To use the measurements to improve the functional understanding of NH3 fluxes with ecosystems and the establish more reliable model parameterisations of NH3 exchange.
The models will be applied to scenarios of land-use, climate and pollution change in relation to ecosystem sustainability. The quantification of ammonia fluxes between the atmosphere and plant communities is a key task required to underpin the EU negotiating position within the UNECE Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution. The Convention is currently working toward a new protocol to control European NOx and NH3 emissions, and it is planned to base this on a comparison of N deposition to critical load exceedance. Sound estimates of ammonia inputs to European ecosystems are therefore essential to underpin this activity.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringnatural resources managementland management
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesmeteorologybiosphera
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringair pollution engineering
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesenvironmental sciencespollution
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
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Topic(s)
Data not availableCall for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
EH26 0QB PENICUIK
United Kingdom