Review and Assessment of Present Air Pollution Effects and Their Recorded Trends

ICP on assessment and monitoring of acidification of rivers and lakes (ICP Waters) ICP on effects of air pollution on materials, including historic and cultural monuments (ICP Materials) ICP on effects of air pollution on natural vegetation and crops (ICP Vegetation) ICP on integrated monitoring of air pollution effects on ecosystems (ICP IM) ICP on modelling and mapping of critical levels and loads and air pollution effects, risks and trends (ICP M&M), including the Coordination Centre for Effects (CCE) Task Force on Health Aspects of Air Pollution (TF Health) 2 Contents Executive Summary Introduction Chapter I-Overall assessment of the present status of air pollution effects and their recorded trends Empirical trends in surface water chemistry Biological recovery from acidification Towards Nitrogen Saturation? Future changes: Application of dynamic modelling. Trends in corrosion damage Status and trends of forest health conditions Effects on crops Heavy metals Chapter II – Human health effects; populations at risk Heath Effects of Particulate Matter Heath Effects of Ozone Heavy Metals Persistent Organic Pollutants Chapter III – Areas and Stocks at Risk Choosing the level of protection Areas and stock at risk from deposition – Critical loads Dynamic modelling on local and regional levels Critical loads for cadmium and lead Stock at risk from ambient air pollution – Critical levels Mapping air pollution effects on materials Chapter IV – Valuation of economic benefits (damages) Chapter V – Conclusions and recommendations References 3 Executive Summary Introduction The Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution has been in effect for more than 20 years. It was the first international legally binding instrument to deal with problems of air pollution on a broad regional basis. It entered into force in 1983, a decade after the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm which signalled the start for active international cooperation to combat acidification and it followed a number of studies, in the 1970's, that confirmed the hypothesis that air pollutants could travel several thousands of kilometres before deposition and damage occurred. Several protocols have been negotiated, motivated by a desire to reduce emissions of air pollutants and alleviate their widespread damage, in exposed parts of Europe and North America, to natural resources of vital environmental and economic importance, such as forests, soils and waters, and to materials (including historical monuments) and, under certain circumstances, their harmful effects on human health. It is not until the Oslo Protocol, adopted …