Great Smoky Mountains

Trees damaged by acid rain in the Great Smoky Mountains. 

The Great Smoky Mountains are so named because of a haze that is usually present. This is caused by hydrocarbon emissions from trees. The concentrations are sometimes so high that the forest areas are in violation of the clean air standards... 

Costello, E.J., Angold, A., Burns, B.J., Stangl, D.K., Tweed, D.L., Erkanli, A., and Worthman, C.M. (1996) The Great Smoky Mountains Study of Youth. Goals, design, methods, and the prevalence of DSM-III-R disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry 53 1129-1136. 

Day, D. E., W. C. Malm, and S. M. Kreidenweis, Seasonal Variations in Aerosol Composition and Acidity at Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains National Parks, J. Air Waste Manage. Assoc., 47, 411-418 (1997). 

Table I. Average Aerosol Composition for Fine and Coarse Particles at a Rural, Forested Location (Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee) and an Urban Location (Houston, Texas) ...

The highest recorded N03" concentrations in streams draining undisturbed watersheds in the United States come from the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee and North Carolina. Nitrate concentrations in Raven Fork... 

Davidson Cl, Goold WD, Mathison TP, et al. 1985. Airborne trace elements in Great Smoky Mountains, Olympic, and Glacier National Parks. Environ Sci Technol 19 27-35. 

USA Alum Cave, Great Smoky Mountains 52 Hammarstrom et al. (2003)... 

Hammarstrom, J.M., Seal, R.R. II, Meier, A.L. and Jackson, J.C. (2003) Weathering of sulfidic shale and copper mine waste secondary minerals and metal cycling in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and North Carolina, USA. Environmental Geology, 45(1), 35-57. 

Tennessee-North Carolina Great Smoky Mountains National Park... 

Atmospheric Effects. The presence of fine particles (0.1-1.0 mm in diameter) or N02 in the atmosphere can result in atmospheric haze or reduced visibility due to light scattering by the particles. The major effect of atmospheric haze has been degradation in visual air quality and is of particular concern in areas of scenic beauty, including most of the major national parks such as Great Smoky Mountain, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and Zion Parks. 

Mohr D. W. and Newton R. C. (1983) Kyanite—staurolite metamorphism in sulfidic schists of the Anakeesta Formation, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carohna. Am. J. Sci. 283, 97-134. 

Figure 2 X-ray maps of monazite from the Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, showing cores with high Th and low Ce, and rims with low Th and high Ce, as expected from Rayleigh distillation of Th during monazite growth.

The effect of acid rain on a stand of trees in the Great Smoky Mountains of the United States. 

With the Great Smoky Mountains to the east, the Blue Ridge range to the west, and a number of ski resorts just miles from town, Asheville is by far North Carolina s most scenic city. It s very earth-friendly too, and you ll see Appalachian Trail hikers stopping in town before heading out for long treks. 

Set near the Great Smoky Mountains and the many man-made lakes of the Tennessee Valley Authority, Knoxville is a scenic city with much to offer outdoor enthusiasts. It is also home to the more than 25,000 students of the University of Tennessee, a population which keeps the city renewed with fresh ideas. 

Whittaker, R.H. (1956). Vegetation of the Great Smoky Mountains. Ecological Monographs 26, 2-80. 

Davidson, C.I., Miller, J.M., Pleskow, M.A., 1982. The influence of surface structure on predicted particle dry deposition to natural grass canopies. Water Air Soil Pollut. 18, 25—43. Davidson, C.I., Goold, W.D., Mathison, T.P., Wiersma, G.B., Brown, K.W., Reilly, M.T., 1985. Airborne trace elements in Great Smoky Mountains, Olympic and Glacier National Parks. Environ. Sci. Technol. 19, 27—35. 

Marcum, L. C. 1974. An evaluation of radioactive feces-tagging as a technique for determining population densities of the black bear (Ursus americanus) in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. M.S. thesis. University of Tennessee, Knoxville. 95 pp. 

Crown condition, as indicated by premature needle loss, has deteriorated at two of the three southern Appalachian sites (Zedaker et al. 1988). In the Great Smoky Mountains the percent red spruce classified as healthy (less than 10% needle loss) decreased from 85-90% in 1985 to about 60% in 1988. Red spruce in the Black Mountains of North Carolina showed a similar trend, but leveled off between 1987 and 1988 with about 70% of the trees classified as healthy. Crown condition at Mount Rogers has remained constant, with about 87% of the red spruce classified as healthy. In all cases, crown condition was not related to elevation or aspect. 

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