Part of a series of articles titled Park Air Profiles.
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Most visitors expect clean air and good visibility in parks. However, Acadia National Park (NP), Maine, is downwind from large urban and industrial areas in the states to the south and west. Polluted air coming from these areas is trapped by the park’s steep slopes and high peaks. Over 30 years of air quality monitoring has shown that Acadia NP receives some of the highest levels of pollution in the northeastern U.S. Air pollution can harm ecosystems, scenic vistas, and public health. This is one of the most important environmental issues facing the park. The National Park Service works to address air pollution effects at Acadia NP, and in parks across the U.S., through science, policy and planning, and by doing our part.
Nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) compounds deposited from the air may have harmful effects on ecosystem processes. Healthy ecosystems can naturally buffer a certain amount of pollution, but once a threshold is passed the ecosystem may respond negatively. This threshold is the critical load, or the amount of pollution above which harmful changes in sensitive ecosystems occur (Porter 2005). N and S deposition change ecosystems through eutrophication (N deposition) and acidification (N + S deposition). Eutrophication increases soil and water nutrients which causes some species to grow more quickly and changes community composition. Ecosystem sensitivity to nutrient N enrichment at Acadia National Park (ACAD) relative to other national parks is low (Sullivan et al. 2016); for a full list of N sensitive ecosystem components, see: NPS ARD 2019. Acidification leaches important cations from soils, lakes, ponds, and streams which decreases habitat quality. Ecosystem sensitivity to acidification at ACAD relative to other national parks is very high (Sullivan et al. 2016); to search for acid-sensitive plant species, see: NPSpecies.
From 2017-2019 total N deposition in ACAD ranged from 3.0 to 3.2 kg-N ha-1 yr-1 and total S deposition ranged from 2.4 to 2.5 kg-S ha-1 yr-1 based on the TDep model (NADP, 2018). ACAD has been monitoring atmospheric N and S deposition since 1981, see the conditions and trends website for park-specific information.
Surface waters and vegetation on ACAD’s high peaks and steep slopes with shallow soils and resistant bedrock that is unable to buffer excess acids are particularly sensitive.
Additional N and S Research:Epiphytic macrolichens grow on tree trunks, branches, and boles. Since these lichens grow above the ground, they obtain all their nutrients directly from precipitation and the air. Many epiphytic lichen species have narrow environmental niches and are extremely sensitive to changes in air pollution. Geiser et al. (2019) used a U.S. Forest Service national survey to develop critical loads of nitrogen (N) and critical loads of sulfur (S) to prevent more than a 20% decline in four lichen community metrics: total species richness, pollution sensitive species richness, forage lichen abundance, and cyanolichen abundance.
McCoy et al. (2021) used forested area from the National Land Cover Database to estimate the impact of air pollution on epiphytic lichen communities. Forested area makes up 121 km2 (79.5%) of the land area of Acadia National Park.
For exceedances of other lichen metrics and the predicted decline of lichen communities see Appendices A and B of McCoy et al. (2021).
Additional modeling was done on 459 lichen species to test the combined effects of air pollution and climate gradients (Geiser et al. 2021). A critical load indicative of initial shifts from pollution-sensitive toward pollution-tolerant species occurred at 1.5 kg-N ha-1 yr-1 and 2.7 kg-S ha-1 yr-1 even under changing climate regimes.
Plants vary in their tolerance of eutrophication and acidification, and some plant species respond to nitrogen (N) or sulfur (S) pollution with declines in growth, survival, or abundance on the landscape. Horn et al. (2018) used the U.S. Forest Service national forest survey to develop critical loads of N and critical loads of S to prevent declines in growth or survival of sensitive tree species. Clark et al. (2019) used a database of plant community surveys to develop critical loads of N and critical loads of S to prevent a decline in abundance of sensitive herbaceous plant species. According to NPSpecies, Acadia National Park contains:
The maps below show how the spatial distribution of estimated Total N and Total S deposition in ACAD has changed from 2000-2002 to 2019-2021 (TDep MMF version 2022.02). Slide the arrows in the middle of the image up and down to compare N and S deposition between the two years (Yearly Data).
Pollutants like mercury and pesticides are concerning because they are persistent and toxic in the environment. These contaminants can travel in the air thousands of miles away from the source of pollution, even depositing in protected places like national parks. In addition, while some of these harmful pollutants may be banned from use, historically contaminated sites continue to endure negative environmental consequences.
When deposited, airborne mercury and other toxic air contaminants are known to harm wildlife like birds and fish, and cause human health concerns. Many of these substances enter the food chain and accumulate in the tissue of organisms causing reduced reproductive success, impaired growth and development, and decreased survival.
At ground level, ozone is harmful to human health and the environment. Ground-level ozone does not come directly from smokestacks or vehicles, but instead is formed when other pollutants, mainly nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds, react in the presence of sunlight.
Over the course of a growing season, ozone can damage plant tissues making it harder for plants to produce and store food. It also weakens plants making them less resistant to disease and insect infestations. Some plants are more sensitive to ozone than others. Search ozone-sensitive plant species found at Acadia.
Visit the NPS air quality conditions and trends website for park-specific ozone information. Acadia National Park has been monitoring ozone since 1995. Check out the live ozone and meteorology data from Acadia, NP and explore air monitoring »
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Part of a series of articles titled Park Air Profiles.
Previous: Park Air Profiles - Index
Last updated: August 17, 2023