Project Number: 1245-12610-001-00
Project Type: Appropriated

Start Date: Mar 26, 2010
End Date: Mar 25, 2015

Objective:
Discern the chemical nature, fate, and transport of critical agricultural pollutants emitted to the atmosphere and consider the potential risks posed by reactivity and/or deposition of these chemicals to sensitive ecosystems. Disseminate results to customers concerning the effects of atmospheric agricultural pollutants on environmental quality.

Approach:
Measure ambient concentrations of agricultural pollutants in soil and in air across the agriculture-urban transect of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Compare volatile organic compound and particulate matter emissions from poultry production under different ammonia management practices. Test novel approaches to fingerprint particulate matter sources chemically and evaluate the fate and transport of critical agricultural pollutants for estimating potential risks using regional-scale atmospheric transport and deposition modeling tools.