Abstract
Dendroecological analysis of tree-ring chronologies was used to determine radial growth responses of a western larch (Larix occidentalis Nutt.) stand to climate and ambient SO2 exposure. A unique, 32-year long record of ambient SO2 concentrations was exploited to estimate annual SO2 dose with a 0.25 ppm threshold. Tree-ring data were a subset from a previous study including three control sites and one polluted site that was near the location of the SO2 monitor. An autoregression model was employed in a stagewise procedure that first removed climate effects by autoregression on the average of the controls and then estimated a dose-response relationship by autoregression of the residuals from the first stage on SO2 exposure. Significant growth losses from air pollution were demonstrated that were approximately equal in magnitude to the variation explained by annual fluctuations of climate.
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Kincaid, W.B., Nash, T.H. Detection of a sulfur dioxide signal in a tree-ring record: a case study from Trail, British Columbia, Canada. GeoJournal 17, 189–192 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02432921
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02432921