Discussion on the future of: De position of Bi ogeochemically I mportant T race S pecies within WMO GAW and IGAC WMO SAG meeting May 2013, Chicago, USA

DEBITS

DEBITS : a Task of IGAC II Deposition of Biogeochemically Important Trace Species DEBITS : a Task of IGAC II Deposition of Biogeochemically Important Trace Species The international DEBITS network composed by 25 stations located all around the tropical belt. DEBITS II task since 2004 accepted in the second phase of IGAC CAAP (1990) / CAD (2000) Composition of Asian Deposition IDAF (IGAC DEBITS Africa) (1995) LBA The Large Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia (1998) CAD IDAF LBA CAD IDAF LBA DEBITS NETWORK

Tropical atmospheric chemistry includes: – high UV flux, high T, high water vapour content promote intense photochemistry – urbanization, industrialization, agriculture and biomass burning are increasing rapidly producing large emissions of gases and particles – deep convection provides rapid vertical transport into the upper tropo and stratosphere and strong deposition A major success of IGAC (phase 1) has been to stress the important influence of tropical atmospheric chemistry on global atmospheric composition and climate Why focus on deposition in the Tropics?

Assessment of acidification effects pH Problem regions in terms of soil sensitivity Kuylenstierna et al Rodhe et al Why focus on deposition in the Tropics?

Tropics are the places where demographic growth is larger in the world and for the future especially in Africa Why focus on deposition in the Tropics?

Biodiversity Hotspot Approach for Conservation Priorities Myers et al. Nature, 2000 Endemism: >1500 species as endemics; Threat: >70% primary vegetation lost Why focus on deposition in the Tropics?

Biodiversity hotspot approach 2050 Phoenix et al Why focus on deposition in the Tropics?

Comparison of deposition studies and modelling HTAP simulation Hemispheric Transport Air Pollution Wet+Dry Deposition of N oxidized +N reduced (kg N/ha/yr)

Tost et al, ACP 2007 Comparison of deposition studies and modelling

 Workshops:  Advisors to: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the African Collaborative Centre for Earth System Science (ACCESS) on the EADN Project. Kisumu, Kenya, 5th to 9th December  Workshop on Atmospheric Deposition: Processes and Environmental Impact F. Dentener, C. Galy-Lacaux. Local Organiser: F. Solmon, The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste Italy, May 2012  Improved data quality control procedures  Participates to the update of the WMO manual of reference WMO N° 160: report (Reference for GAW precipitation chemistry) and encourages laboratories to participate in QC and QA activities Recent activities

The ‘Equatorial Africa Deposition Network’ (EADN) is a Full-sized project of the Global Environment facility (GEF) spanning both the Land Degradation (LD) and International Waters (IW) focal areas. The project is Co-executed by the African Centre for Climate and Earth System Science (ACCESS) and UNU-INWEH, and Implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

New initiatives: Africa (IDAF): LAKE VICTORIA  The Lake Victoria Basin is one of Africa’s largest transboundary water resources covering an area of about 194,200 km2, and surrounding the second largest freshwater Lake in the world (68,800 km²), with the largest freshwater fishery resources. Main source of the white Nile.  The Lake Victoria catchment is shared among five states in the following proportions; Tanzania 44% (85,448 km 2 ), Kenya 22% (42,724 km2), Uganda 16% (31,072 km2), Rwanda 11% (21,362 km 2 ) and Burundi 7% (13,594 km2).  The Lake is shared among three of the five Partner States of East Africa, i.e., Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, with a shoreline of approximately 3,450 km long

Lake Victoria Equatorial climate Bi-annual rainfall pattern March May, Oct to december Uganda 2,400 mm annually Tanzania and Kenya between 1,350 mm - 2,447 mm annually. Burundi and Rwanda annual 1800 mm annually. Rainfall amount increases from east to west, ranging between 600 to 2,800 mm/yr

Change in population density around lake Victoria

Scope: The EADN project will help to determine where the majority of nitrogen (N)and phosphorous (P) macronutrients deposited in the African Great Lakes are coming from, and how the nutrients travel across the continent over time. This an important phenomenon to understand because current research shows that most N and P nutrient loading in the African Great Lakes is a result of wet and dry atmospheric deposition (not solely wet deposition as initially thought), and there are no current estimates of regional atmospheric transport of phosphorous within tropical Africa nor export of N and P from the continent in tropical latitudes. Data collected by the Equatorial Africa Deposition Network will be used in conjunction with remote sensing data and modelling tools in order to determine the spatial and temporal patterns of atmospheric nutrient transport and their relationship to land use patterns.

Project Goals:  To establish an Equatorial African Deposition Network (EADN) initially consisting of ten stations across the continent that can continuously monitor dry and wet atmospheric deposition rates of nitrogen and phosphorous species at all sites.  Create an overview of the spatial characterization of atmospheric deposition within the region  Enable equatorial African Governments to work together on issues of transboundary transport of major macronutrients Partners (including links): ACCESS United Nations Environment Programme World Bank University of Nairobi

 Via WMO, improved collaboration with other deposition networks (CAPMON, EMEP, ACCENT, NADP, EANET)  Improved networking with modelling, remote sensing and impacts studying  New networks: South America & Equatorial Africa  Outputs listed at: Recent activities

Networking Africa and South America: Deposition of Biogeochemically Trace Species (IGAC/DEBITS) Canada : Canadian Air and Precipitation Monitoring Network (CAPMoN) and provincial networks East Asia : East Asia Network (EANET) Europe : European Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMEP) Global : World Meteorological Organization’s Global Atmosphere Watch Programme (WMO/GAW) United States : National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) Other national networks : India, Russia, China, Korea Data assessed following WMO guidelines and archived in the EBAS Database System at the Norwegian Institute for Air Research (NILU): ( Integration of Data from the Major Wet Deposition Monitoring Networks

Future challenges / New approaches  Optimum network functioning?  Decentralised operations but centralised protocols and QA?  Linkages to different international initiatives?  Integration with related topics?  Inclusion in climate change programmes?  Food security and health studies?  Securing long-term financial sustainability?  Inclusion into governmental programs?  Linkages to different international initiatives?

New questions around atmospheric deposition? How has wet and dry deposition of major ions changed from 1990 (as possible) as a result of changing precursor anthropogenic emissions? Important questions for tropical regions and developping countries (Additional sites are needed to represent the urban areas (in addition to nonperturbed sites) What is known about inter- and intra-continental long range transboundary transport of gases and particles and their effects on precipitation composition (as possible)? What is the relative importance of wet versus dry deposition?  Focus on dry deposition fluxes (Dry deposition modelling, direct mesaurements) we have seen in the WMO assessment that gaps exist for dry fluxes compared to Wet Dep  Additional data analysis: phosphorus, organics (to follow WMO guidelines) Future challenges/ New approaches

Decisions to be taken at: 2013 IGAC SSC Berg-en-Dal, Kruger National Park, South Africa 30 Sept – 4 Oct 2012

DEBITS workshop 2006 Berg-en-Dal