Trees Staff Site Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta

175 ISSN 2086-5953 PROTECTOR TREES: AGRICULTURE SHIELD FROM AIR POLLUTION Nadita Zairina Suchesdian 1 1 Department of Geophysics and Meteorology, Bogor Agricultural University, Jl. Raya Darmaga, Bogor, West Java 16680, Indonesia Email: hyuuganadita_jigokushoujoyahoo.com ABSTRACT Our concern about air pollution is essentially a reflection of the accumulating evidence that air pollutants adversely affect the health and the welfare of human beings. Extensive effects research has established that air pollutants affect the health of humans, animals, damage vegetation and material, reduce visibility and solar radiation, and affect weather and climate. A large number of food, forage, and ornamental crops as well as trees have been identified to be damaged by air pollutants. The effects are in the form of leaf damage, stunting growth, decreased size and yield of fruits, and wilting and destruction of flowers. Keywords: Air Pollution, Vegetation, Trees. 1 INTRODUCTION The term pollution is used to describe the admixture of any foreign substance which we dislike with something pleasant or desirable. Atmospheric pollution, therefore, is an undesirable substance mixed with the open air. Any objectionable gas in the air is atmospheric pollution, whether it is harmful or merely unpleasant, but this definition does not apply only to gases. The air frequently contains solid particles or tarry droplets, less than about 10 μm in diameter, which continue in suspension for a long time. Since any particulate matter is liable to cause trouble, these aerosols, as they are sometimes called, are all atmospheric pollution, irrespective of their chemical nature. Also, by general consent, the term atmospheric pollution is applied to larger particles, when these are lifted into the air by the wind or emitted from a chimney. Although the largest particles escape from the atmosphere relatively quickly by falling to the ground, they are capable of causing damage and intense irritation. Finally, there is the risk of radioactive materials in the air, in amounts sufficient to injure public health, whether directly or through selective absorption by food plants and animals. Agriculture is on the receiving end of air pollution. It accepts what is put out and it tries to make the best of it. Zimmerman 1950 explained that plants are most sensitive in many respects to some chemicals and impurities than animals, but to other animals are more sensitive. Plants can detect chemicals in lower concentrations in the atmosphere than people do. In any study of atmospheric contamination which causes injury to vegetation, sulfur dioxide is usually given first consideration because of its well- known effects on plants and because it is often present in greater amounts than other contaminants, arising as it does from the combustion of all fuels and sulfide ores.. Even when sulfur dioxide is not the major contaminant or is not the cause of the injury to the vegetation may be a useful index to the over-all contaminants. Other important atmospheric contaminants which can cause injury to vegetation in particular places include hydrogen fluoride, sulfur acid aerosols, and certain yet unidentified organic compounds.[4] 2 DESCRIPTION

2.1 Trees

Trees or forest growth can be interpreted as a budget and be itemized as incomes, expenses and savings. Photosynthetic production can be signified as income, respiratory loss as expenses and growth as savings. Sequestered carbon by trees in plantation for industrial material supply plantations industrial plantations in the tropics is estimated at about 10tChayear in good sites. The carbon accumulated by tree planting to rehabilitate degraded land rehabilitation forests is no always less than that of industrial plantations.[2] Forest growth means the increasing storage of carbon dioxides and the size of forest. The forest, nonetheless, has limitation in size and it will be occupied to the fullest extent by carbon dioxide, eventually. That is the stage of the climax forest, ISSN 2086-5953 and in terms of carbon dioxide and forest relation, there is no more carbon dioxide coming into at this stage. This signifies the stage of no more room for the role of forest to play role in carbon sequestration.[2] Picture 1. Carbon cycle in life www.kentsimmons.uwinnipeg.ca If a forest fire occur, carbon dioxides would get released into the atmosphere just in the same manner as the carbon dioxide gets released from the forest when it catches on a fire. In the long term perspective, such as 200 to 500 years, the carbon dioxide exist only temporarily in the trees or forest because of the life cycle of trees or forests and because such naturally caused damages on forest as natural fire, cyclone, et., occurs frequently. Therefore, there is no room for the forest to play its role in carbon dioxide sequestration when considering such a long time span. For this reason, when we evaluate the role forests in carbon dioxide sequestration, time span should always be kept in our mind .[2]

2.2 Air Pollution