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Using Epiphytic Lichens to Monitor Nitrogen Deposition Near Natural Gas Drilling Operations in the Wind River Range, WY, USA

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Abstract

Rapid expansion of natural gas drilling in Sublette County, WY (1999–present), has raised concerns about the potential ecological effects of enhanced atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition to the Wind River Range (WRR) including the Class I Bridger Wilderness. We sampled annual throughfall (TF) N deposition and lichen thalli N concentrations under forest canopies in four different drainages of the WRR. Measurements of TF N deposition and N concentrations in lichen thalli were highest at plots closest to drilling operations (<30 km). N concentrations in lichens decreased exponentially with distance from drilling activity. Highest TF N deposition, 4.1 kg ha−1 year−1, coincided with clear evidence of damage to lichen thalli. This deposition value is above estimated preindustrial deposition conditions (0.9 kg N ha−1 year−1) and regional critical loads (a deposition value below which ecosystem harm is prevented) of N deposition for sensitive ecosystem components. N concentrations in Usnea lapponica were strongly correlated (r = 0.96) with TF N deposition, demonstrating that elemental analysis of lichen material can be used to estimate TF N deposition. N concentrations below 1.35 % in U. lapponica and 1.12 % in Letharia vulpina were associated with estimated background conditions of 0.9 kg N ha−1 year−1. Additional lichen sampling in the Bridger Wilderness is recommended to further quantify and monitor spatial patterns of N deposition and to define areas of elevated N deposition.

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Acknowledgments

This project was funded by the Forest Inventory and Analysis Program — RMRS (Grant # 09-JV-11221638-323). We thank Adam McMurray, Ted Porwoll, Becca Berzof, David Brockett, Adam Lunsford, and the BTNF fish crew for helping with field work, and the UMN Research and Analytical Laboratory for elemental analysis. We are also grateful to Terry Svalberg, Mark Story, Ted Porwoll, and Andrea Davidson for support, advice, and resource use. And finally many thanks to Doug Glavich, Terry Svalberg, and Adam McMurray for reviewing the document and providing useful comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. U.S. Forest Service, Northern and Intermountain Region, Air Resources Management Program, Bozeman, MT, 59711, USA

    Jill A. McMurray

  2. Department of Ecology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, 59717, USA

    Dave W. Roberts

  3. US Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Riverside, CA, 92507, USA

    Mark E. Fenn

  4. U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region Air, Resources Management Program, Corvallis, OR, USA

    Linda H. Geiser

  5. US Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Portland, OR, 97205, USA

    Sarah Jovan

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  1. Jill A. McMurray
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Correspondence to Jill A. McMurray.

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McMurray, J.A., Roberts, D.W., Fenn, M.E. et al. Using Epiphytic Lichens to Monitor Nitrogen Deposition Near Natural Gas Drilling Operations in the Wind River Range, WY, USA. Water Air Soil Pollut 224, 1487 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-013-1487-3

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