AAAR 36th Annual Conference October 16 - October 20, 2017 Raleigh Convention Center Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
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Decrease in Acid Rain over 26-year Study at Paradise, Mt. Rainier National Park
ASHLEEN REDDY, Juan Rodriguez, Rebecca Lofrgen, Barbara Samora, Anne Johansen, Central Washington University
Abstract Number: 242 Working Group: Aerosols, Clouds, and Climate
Abstract Weekly wet precipitation samples from Paradise in Mt. Rainier National Park, WA, were analyzed for major anions and cations, conductivity and pH. Volume weighted 3-month averages were tested for significant trends throughout the 26-year monitoring period starting in 1989 and compared with analogous data collected at established National Atmospheric Deposition Program sites throughout the state. There is an increasing trend of sulfate, nitrate, and protons from 1989-2000. However, from 2001-2015 there is a decreasing trend of sulfate by 58%, nitrate by 38% and protons by 67%. The associated pH increased from 5.1 to 5.5. These results indicate that air pollution standards contribute significantly to the decrease in acid rain deposition to this pristine and vulnerable high elevation location, and that trans-Pacific transport of pollution is not detected in the form of acid rain and associated anions.