Examining the Intricacies of Ozone Removal by Deciduous Forests

Aaron Sidder of American Geophysical Union reports that ozone plays a vital role in Earth’s climate system. In the stratosphere, which begins about six miles (9.7 kilometers) off the ground, ozone protects the planet from harmful ultraviolet radiation. Lower in the atmosphere, however, the molecule is an air pollutant injurious to both humans and plants, as well as a greenhouse gas. Ozone interacts with forests through a process known as dry deposition, often with harmful consequences. In this process, turbulence in the atmospheric boundary layer brings ozone to the surface where reactions on and inside leaves and soil remove…