FORCAsT-gs: Importance of stomatal conductance parameterisation to
estimated ozone deposition velocity
Abstract
The role of stomata in regulating photosynthesis and transpiration, and
hence governing global biogeochemical cycles and climate, is well-known.
Less well-understood, however, is the importance of stomatal control to
the exchange of other trace gases between terrestrial vegetation and the
atmosphere. Yet these gases determine atmospheric composition, and hence
air quality and climate, on scales ranging from local to global, and
seconds to decades. Vegetation is a major sink for ground-level ozone
via the process of dry deposition and the primary source of many
biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs). The rate of dry deposition
is largely controlled by the rate of diffusion of a gas through the
stomata, and this also governs the emission rate of some key BVOCs. It
is critical therefore that canopy-atmosphere exchange models capture the
physiological processes controlling stomatal conductance and the
transfer of trace gases other than carbon dioxide and water vapour. We
incorporate three of the most widely used coupled stomatal
conductance-photosynthesis models into the one-dimensional multi-layer
FORest Canopy-Atmosphere Transfer (FORCAsT1.0) model to assess the
importance of choice of parameterisation on simulated ozone deposition
rates. Modelled GPP and stomatal conductance across a broad range of
ecosystems differ by up to a factor of 3 between the best and worst
performing model configurations. This leads to divergences in seasonal
and diel profiles of ozone deposition velocity of 1-30% and deposition
rate of up to 10%, demonstrating that the choice of stomatal
conductance parameterisation is critical in understanding ozone
deposition.