Acid Rain Effects on Forest Soils begin to Reverse – USGS
Led by a U.S Geological Survey researchers have found that soil acidification from acid rain can be harmful to plant and aquatic life. As acid rain acidifies soil it depletes calcium reserves, which are important due to the fact that calcium prevents formation of aluminum which is toxic to plant and aquatic life. However the effects of acid rain has now begun to reverse in forests of the northeastern United States and eastern Canada. The top soil layers have shown a strong recovery response, but deeper layers are increasing in aluminum, which shows signs of further acidification. However, this is seen as part of the recovery process as aluminum moves downward in the soil hopefully it will be stored in a non-toxic
I personally find it interesting how resilient this earth can be. Us humans cause global warming leading to acid rain and yet the soil still rejuvenates and heals itself. However, on the other hand if we don’t stop damaging the earth one day we will cause irreversible damage and the soil won’t just replenish itself. Acid rain is an interesting problem because we don’t know what kind of damage exactly causes it so its gonna be a harder issue to fix. Which relates to Environmental Science in the sense that, scientists want to find ways to create a better way of living but can’t due to the damage we humans do to the earth.
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I assumed we knew what acid rain was caused by, and seeing that we dont is concerning, especially if we mean to eventually fix all the problems like acid rain we’ve created
I think that it is very interesting that acid rain is affecting the soil this way. I think that it’s interesting that the rain is being harmful to the soil for plants and aquatic life, but I find it very interesting that it is able to recover by itself. I think that acid rain going on the soil is something that cannot be fixed as much, but there are always other options.
This is interesting because I am not very familiar with acid rain. I think more research should be done in order to help prevent the effects of ths rain.
I agree and find it interesting how even though humans continue to negatively impact the Earth, the Earth some how is able to sustain itself. I was thinking, what are some ways in which, specifically to this situation, we as humans could help prevent this situation?
I think this is a great example of how humans take our planet for granted. I agree with you that if we continue to live how we are now, we will make irreversible changes and we need to have more sustainable practices put in place.