Ozone and particle fluxes in a Mediterranean forest predicted by the AIRTREE model.

Mediterranean forests are among the most threatened ecosystems by the concurrent effects of climate change and atmospheric pollution. In this work we parameterized the AIRTREE multi-layer model to predict CO2, water, ozone, and fine particles exchanges between leaves and the atmosphere. AIRTREE consists of four different modules: (1) a canopy environmental module determines the leaf temperature and radiative fluxes at different levels from above to the bottom of the canopy; (2) a hydrological module predicts soil water flow and water availability to the plant's photosynthetic apparatus; (3) a photosynthesis module estimates the net photosynthesis and stomatal conductance, and (4) a deposition module estimates ozone and PM deposition sinks as a function of the resistances to gas diffusion in the atmosphere, and within the canopy and leaf boundary layer. We describe the AIRTREE model framework, accuracy and sensitivity by comparing modeling results against long-term continuous Eddy Covariance measurements of ozone, water, and CO2 fluxes in a Mediterranean Holm oak forest, and we discuss potential application of AIRTREE for ozone-risk assessment in view of availability of a large observational database from ecosystems distributed worldwide.