An assessment of tree health and trace element accumulation near a coal-fired generating station, Manitoba, Canada

A forest health assessment was performed in stands dominated by bur oak and trembling aspen to study the potential effects of airborne emissions from a 132 MW coal-fired station. Forty-two stands were sampled within a 16-km radius of the station for both foliar stress symptoms and trace element toxicology. The concentrations of tracer elements (As, Ba, Sr, and V) in the leaf litter were not spatially congruent with airborne emission deposition models (except Ba, which showed elevated levels immediately SE of the station), nor were they at phytotoxic levels. Elemental concentrations were significantly related to soil parameters including organic matter and texture. No patterns were found in forest health along directional or distance gradients from the generating station. Trembling aspen stands demonstrated little decline in general, but three of the 19 bur oak plots, all located on thin sandy soils developed on calcareous till, demonstrated branch dieback. In addition to poor soil conditions, two of these sites also had high water tables, and exhibited tree mortality. The bur oak decline did not appear to be related to emissions from the station, but is suspected to be a result of poor site quality, with urban development as a confounding factor.