Urban Air Pollution and Forests

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxi

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2. Past and Present Environmental and Sociological Factors Affecting Forests in the Mexico City Air Basin

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

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   2. Historical Summary of the Geology, Climate, Hydrology, Culture, and Natural Resource Utilization in the Basin of Mexico

      • Guadalupe de la Lanza Espino, José Luis García-Calderón

      Pages 3-23

   3. Socioeconomic Change and Its Impact on Forest Resources in the Basin of Mexico

      • Exequiel Ezcurra, Marisa Mazari-Hiriart, Irene Pisanty, Adrián Guillermo Aguilar

      Pages 24-43

   4. Physical Geography, Hydrogeology, and Forest Soils of the Basin of Mexico

      • Luis E. Marín, Oscar Escolero-Fuentes, Antonio Trinidad-Santos

      Pages 44-67

   5. Forests in the Basin of Mexico: Types, Geographic Distribution, and Condition

      • Carlos Rodríguez-Franco

      Pages 68-85

   6. The Climate of the Mexico City Air Basin: Its Effects on the Formation and Transport of Pollutants

      • Ernesto Jáuregui

      Pages 86-117

3. Air Pollution in the Mexico City Air Basin

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 119-119

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   2. Air Pollution Levels and Trends in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area

      • Humberto Bravo-Alvarez, Ricardo Torres-Jardón

      Pages 121-159

   3. Emissions Trends and Pollution Control Strategies in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area

      • M. Esther Ruiz, Jorge Gasca

      Pages 160-193

   4. Heavy Metals in Forest Soils, Vegetation, and Drainage Waters in the Basin of Mexico

      • Mark E. Fenn, Juana María Castro-Servín, Tomás Hernández-Tejeda, Natalie Krage, Chris Goodson, Thomas Meixner

      Pages 194-221

4. Ecological Effects of Air Pollutants in the Mexico City Air Basin: Case Studies

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 223-223

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   2. Oxidant Exposure and Effects on Pines in Forests in the Mexico City and Los Angeles, California, Air Basins

      • Paul R. Miller, L. I. de Bauer, Tomás Hernández-Tejeda

      Pages 225-242

   3. Decline of Sacred Fir in the Desierto de los Leones National Park

      • Dionicio Alvarado-Rosales, Tomás Hernández-Tejeda

      Pages 243-260

   4. Histological Symptoms of Air Pollution Injury in Foliage, Bark, and Xylem of Abies religiosa in the Basin of Mexico

      • Teresa Terrazas, Sergio Bernal-Salazar

      Pages 261-282

   5. Lichens and Air Pollution in the Forests Surrounding Mexico City

      • Angel Zambrano, T. H. Nash, M. A. Herrera-Campos

      Pages 283-297

   6. Nitrogen and Sulfur Deposition in the Mexico City Air Basin: Impacts on Forest Nutrient Status and Nitrate Levels in Drainage Waters

      • Mark E. Fenn, L. I. de Bauer, Karl Zeller, Abel Quevedo, Claudio Rodríguez, Tomás Hernández-Tejeda

      Pages 298-319

   7. Effects of Oxidants in Ambient Air on Annual Crops in the Basin of Mexico

      • Carlos Fredy Ortíz-García, Héctor D. Laguette-Rey, L. I. de Bauer

      Pages 320-333

5. Summary, Synthesis, and Perspectives

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 335-335

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   2. Summary of Air Pollution Impacts on Forests in the Mexico City Air Basin

      • Mark E. Fenn, L. I. de Bauer, Tomás Hernández-Tejeda

      Pages 337-355

At present, roughly half of the world's population lives in urban centers. There are now more than 20 cities with a population of over 10 million inhabitants, compared to less than 5 about 50 years ago. This tendency toward urbanization is expected to continue, particularly in the developing world. A consequence of this growing trend is that millions of people are being exposed to harmful levels of urban air pollutants caused mainly by emissions from motor vehicles and from industrial and domestic activities involving the combustion of fossil fuels. The driving force for the design and implementation of emission control strate­ gies aimed at improving air quality has been the protection of the health of the population in urban centers. There are, however, other consequences of the pres­ ence of air pollutants besides the direct effect on human health. Reduced visibil­ ity, damage to monuments and buildings, and many other such consequences indirectly affect our quality of life. Another set of consequences involves damage to ecological systems. In fact, the nature of "photochemical smog" was first uncovered in the 1950s in connection with observations of its harmful effects on crops and plants in the vicinity of Los Angeles.

• Air pollution
• air quality
• climate
• emission
• emissions
• environment
• forest
• health
• hydrology
• nitrogen
• pollution
• population
• sustainability
• vegetation

From the reviews:

"The book makes an important contribution to the development of regulations and strategies designed to control air pollution. It provides an excellent starting point for all those interested in the topic of air pollution and its effects on forests. The book’s strength lies in the extensive collection of case studies which clearly depict the impact of pollutants on the species analysed as well as the ecological consequences of such exposure." (Alicia Chacalo Hilu, Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, Issue 4, 2006)

• USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Riverside, USA

  Mark E. Fenn

• Especialidad de Agrometeorología Instituto de Recursos Naturales, Colegio de Postgraduados, Montecillo, Mexico

  L. I. Bauer

• SAGARPA Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP), Centro Nacional de Investigación Disciplinaria en Conservación y Mejoramiento de Ecosistemas Forestales (CENID-COMEF), Mexico City, Mexico

  Tomás Hernández-Tejeda

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