Dry deposition washoff and dew on the surfaces of pine foliage on the urban- and mountain-facing sides of Mt. Gokurakuji, western Japan

Dry deposition and dew components on pine foliage were measured from 1998 to 2000 on the urban- and mountainfacing sides of Mt. Gokurakuji in order to estimate the effect of anthropogenic activities to dry deposition and dew concentration on the surfaces of pine foliage. A leaf wash experiment was employed to determine the dry deposition rates on the pine foliage. The NO3- and SO4- dry deposition rates-per unit surface area of pine foliage were 1.47 and 0.28 mumol m(-2) h(-1) respectively on the urban-facing side and 0.32 and 0.09 mumol m(-2) h(-1) on the mountain-facing side. Dry deposition fluxes of N (NO3- +NH4+) and S (SO42-) to the forest floors were 8.4 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1) and 2.8 kg S ha(-1) yr(-1) on the urban-facing, and 3.3 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1) and 1.8 kg S ha(-1) yr(-1) on the mountain-facing side, respectively. The higher dry deposition fluxes of N and S on the urban-facing side could be attributed to its proximity to traffic roads and the urban area. The concentrations of most ions in the dew were higher on the urban-facing side (U130) than on, the mountain-facing side (M430). NO3- and SO42- concentrations in dew at U130 were 802 and 428 mueq l(-1), respectively, while at M430 they were 199 and 222 mueq l(-1), respectively, suggesting that higher dry deposition rates on the urban-facing side enhanced their concentrations in the dew on this side. The role of dry deposits and subsequently dissolved ones in dew on the needle surfaces is discussed in terms of pine tree damage by atmospheric depositions. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.