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Updated: Jun 17, 2026

Methods of Soil Resampling to Monitor Changes in the Chemical Concentrations of Forest Soils

Methods of Soil Resampling to Monitor Changes in the Chemical Concentrations of Forest Soils

Published on: November 25, 2016

A conceptual framework: redefining forest soil's critical acid loads under a changing climate.

Steven G McNulty¹, Johnny L Boggs

¹USDA Forest Service, Eastern Forests Environmental Assessment Threats Center, Southern Global Change Program, 920 Main Campus Dr. Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA. steve_mcnulty@ncsu.edu

Environmental Pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)

|January 5, 2010

Summary

Forests stressed by acid deposition, even below critical acid load (CAL) thresholds, can be vulnerable to drought and insect outbreaks. Long-term nitrogen deposition weakened red spruce, leading to mortality when combined with drought and southern pine beetles.

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Area of Science:

Forest Ecology
Environmental Science
Ecosystem Stressors

Background:

Critical soil acid load (CAL) guidelines traditionally assess single, long-term pollutant impacts on forest health.
Ecosystems face multiple, simultaneous stresses, which may not be accurately reflected by single-stress CAL assessments.
The Appalachian Mountains receive high acidic deposition, yet are below CAL thresholds for direct damage.

Purpose of the Study:

To present a conceptual framework for understanding ecosystem consequences of multiple environmental stress interactions.
To investigate how long-term acid deposition may predispose forests to other ecological stressors.
To support the concept with limited plot-level data.

Main Methods:

Analysis of forest mortality in the Appalachian Mountains following a drought period.
Investigation of the role of long-term acid deposition, specifically nitrogen, in altering forest susceptibility.
Examination of the combined impacts of acidic deposition, drought, and insect infestation.

Main Results:

Red spruce trees experienced significant mortality during a drought period (1999-2002), initially attributed to southern pine beetles.
Evidence suggests long-term nitrogen deposition reduced red spruce water uptake and oleoresin production, increasing susceptibility to insects.
The observed mortality resulted from the synergistic interaction of nitrogen deposition, drought, and insect attack, not exceeding CAL alone.

Conclusions:

Forest ecosystems can be vulnerable to mortality even when below critical acid load thresholds due to cumulative stress.
Long-term acid deposition, particularly nitrogen, can weaken forest resilience, predisposing them to damage from other stressors like drought and pests.
Future assessments of critical acid load must incorporate the impacts of multiple, interacting environmental stressors for accurate ecosystem risk evaluation.