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• 1. [Article] Urban Ecosystem Services: Tree Diversity and Stability of Tropospheric Ozone Removal

  Urban forests provide important ecosystem services, such as urban air quality improvement by removing pollutants. While robust evidence exists that plant physiology, abundance, and distribution within ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Urban Ecosystem Services: Tree Diversity and Stability of Tropospheric Ozone Removal Author: Manes, Fausto, Incerti, Guido, Salvatori, Elisabetta, Vitale, Marcello, Ricotta, Carlo, Costanza, Robert Year: 2012 Urban forests provide important ecosystem services, such as urban air quality improvement by removing pollutants. While robust evidence exists that plant physiology, abundance, and distribution within cities are basic parameters affecting the magnitude and efficiency of air pollution removal, little is known about effects of plant diversity on the stability of this ecosystem service. Here, by means of a spatial analysis integrating system dynamic modeling and geostatistics, we assessed the effects of tree diversity on the removal of tropospheric ozone (O3) in Rome, Italy, in two years (2003 and 2004) that were very different for climatic conditions and ozone levels. Different tree functional groups showed complementary uptake patterns, related to tree physiology and phenology, maintaining a stable community function across different climatic conditions. Our results, although depending on the city-specific conditions of the studied area, suggest a higher function stability at increasing diversity levels in urban ecosystems. In Rome, such ecosystem services, based on published unitary costs of externalities and of mortality associated with O3, can be prudently valued to roughly US $2 and $3 million/year, respectively. Title: Urban Ecosystem Services: Tree Diversity and Stability of Tropospheric Ozone Removal Author: Manes, Fausto, Incerti, Guido, Salvatori, Elisabetta, Vitale, Marcello, Ricotta, Carlo, Costanza, Robert Year: 2012 Urban forests provide important ecosystem services, such as urban air quality improvement by removing pollutants. While robust evidence exists that plant physiology, abundance, and distribution within cities are basic parameters affecting the magnitude and efficiency of air pollution removal, little is known about effects of plant diversity on the stability of this ecosystem service. Here, by means of a spatial analysis integrating system dynamic modeling and geostatistics, we assessed the effects of tree diversity on the removal of tropospheric ozone (O3) in Rome, Italy, in two years (2003 and 2004) that were very different for climatic conditions and ozone levels. Different tree functional groups showed complementary uptake patterns, related to tree physiology and phenology, maintaining a stable community function across different climatic conditions. Our results, although depending on the city-specific conditions of the studied area, suggest a higher function stability at increasing diversity levels in urban ecosystems. In Rome, such ecosystem services, based on published unitary costs of externalities and of mortality associated with O3, can be prudently valued to roughly US $2 and $3 million/year, respectively. Close

• 2. [Article] Artificial modifications of the coast in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: quick solutions or long-term liabilities?

  The Deepwater Horizon oil spill threatened many coastal ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico during the spring and summer of 2010. Mitigation strategies included the construction of barrier sand berms, the ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Artificial modifications of the coast in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: quick solutions or long-term liabilities? Author: Martinez, M. Luisa, Feagin, Rusty A., Yeager, Kevin M., Day, John W., Costanza, Robert, Harris, Jim A, Hobbs, Richard J., López-Portillo, Jorge, Walker, Ian J., Higgs, Eric, Moreno-Casasola, Patricia, Sheinbaum, Julio, Yáñez-Arancibia, Alejandro Year: 2012 The Deepwater Horizon oil spill threatened many coastal ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico during the spring and summer of 2010. Mitigation strategies included the construction of barrier sand berms, the restriction or blocking of inlets, and the diversion of freshwater from rivers to the coastal marshes and into the ocean, in order to flush away the oil, on the premise that these measures could reduce the quantity of oil reaching sensitive coastal environments such as wetlands or estuaries. These projects result in changes to the ecosystems that they were intended to protect. Long-term effects include alterations of the hydrological and ecological characteristics of estuaries, changes in sediment transport along the coastal barrier islands, the loss of sand resources, and adverse impacts to benthic and pelagic organisms. Although there are no easy solutions for minimizing the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon disaster on coastal ecosystems, we recommend that federal, state, and local agencies return to the strategic use of long-term restoration plans for this region. Title: Artificial modifications of the coast in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: quick solutions or long-term liabilities? Author: Martinez, M. Luisa, Feagin, Rusty A., Yeager, Kevin M., Day, John W., Costanza, Robert, Harris, Jim A, Hobbs, Richard J., López-Portillo, Jorge, Walker, Ian J., Higgs, Eric, Moreno-Casasola, Patricia, Sheinbaum, Julio, Yáñez-Arancibia, Alejandro Year: 2012 The Deepwater Horizon oil spill threatened many coastal ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico during the spring and summer of 2010. Mitigation strategies included the construction of barrier sand berms, the restriction or blocking of inlets, and the diversion of freshwater from rivers to the coastal marshes and into the ocean, in order to flush away the oil, on the premise that these measures could reduce the quantity of oil reaching sensitive coastal environments such as wetlands or estuaries. These projects result in changes to the ecosystems that they were intended to protect. Long-term effects include alterations of the hydrological and ecological characteristics of estuaries, changes in sediment transport along the coastal barrier islands, the loss of sand resources, and adverse impacts to benthic and pelagic organisms. Although there are no easy solutions for minimizing the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon disaster on coastal ecosystems, we recommend that federal, state, and local agencies return to the strategic use of long-term restoration plans for this region. Close