Water, acid terrestrial

Rainwater and snowmelt water are primary factors determining the very nature of the terrestrial carbon cycle, with photosynthesis acting as the primary exchange mechanism from the atmosphere. Bicarbonate is the most prevalent ion in natural surface waters (rivers and lakes), which are extremely important in the carbon cycle, accoxmting for 90% of the carbon flux between the land surface and oceans (Holmen, Chapter 11). In addition, bicarbonate is a major component of soil water and a contributor to its natural acid-base balance. The carbonate equilibrium controls the pH of most natural waters, and high concentrations of bicarbonate provide a pH buffer in many systems. Other acid-base reactions (discussed in Chapter 16), particularly in the atmosphere, also influence pH (in both natural and polluted systems) but are generally less important than the carbonate system on a global basis. 

The lateral diverticulum cells in semi-terrestrial species such as toads can still detect a wide range of amino acids, comparable to the properties of fish neuroepithelium. Both water-soluble and volatile odourants are discriminated by the olfactory neurones of the Clawed toad (Xenopus) (Iida and Kashiwayanagi, 1999). When single olfactory neurones were tested with acidic, neutral and basic amino acids, over 50% of the receptors gave some excitatory response. 

Wright R.F., Schindler D.W. Interaction of acid rain and global changes Effects on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Water Air Soil Pollut 1995 85 89-99. 

Amino acid measurements in ALH84001 are almost certainly the result of Antarctic ice contamination. Amino acids are readily soluble in water but PAHs are practically insoluble. Isotopic measurements of 14C show that terrestrial carbon is incorporated into the meteorite during extended stays in the Antarctic ice fields. In addition, microbial activity on the exposed surfaces provides an additional source of biogenic organic material that may be incorporated over time. 

Terrestrial plants take up nickel from soil primarily via the roots (NRCC 1981 WHO 1991). The nickel uptake rate from soil is dependent on soil type, pH, humidity, organic content, and concentration of extractable nickel (NAS 1975 WHO 1991). For example, at soil pH less than 6.5 nickel uptake is enhanced due to breakdown of iron and manganese oxides that form stable complexes with nickel (Rencz and Shilts 1980). The exact chemical forms of nickel that are most readily accumulated from soil and water are unknown however, there is growing evidence that complexes of nickel with organic acids are the most favored (Kasprzak 1987). In addition to their uptake from the soils, plants consumed by humans may receive several milligrams of nickel per... 

Kuylenstierna, J. C. I., Cambridge, H. M., Cinderby, S., ChadwickK, M. J. (1995). Terrestrial Ecosystem Sensitivity to Acidic Deposition in Developing Countries. Water, Air and Soil Pollution, 85, 2319-2324. 

The chemical weathering of crustal rock was discussed in Chapter 14 from the perspective of clay mineral formation. It was shown that acid attack of igneous silicates produces dissolved ions and a weathered solid residue, called a clay mineral. Examples of these weathering reactions were shown in Table 14.1 using CO2 + H2O as the acid (carbonic acid). Other minerals that undergo terrestrial weathering include the evaporites, biogenic carbonates, and sulfides. Their contributions to the major ion content of river water are shown in Table 21.1. 

The terrestrial weathering of organic matter derived from shales and soils results in the oxidation of carbon, which generates CO2. Dissolution of this CO2 in water produces carbonic acid. This weak acid serves to enhance chemical weathering reactions... 

Ammonia (NH3) is a relatively strong base, and at physiological pH values it is mainly present in the form of the ammonium ion NH4 (see p. 30). NH3 and NH4 are toxic, and at higher concentrations cause brain damage in particular. Ammonia therefore has to be effectively inactivated and excreted. This can be carried out in various ways. Aquatic animals can excrete NH4 directly. For example, fish excrete NH4 via the gills (ammonotelic animals). Terrestrial vertebrates, including humans, hardly excrete any NH3, and instead, most ammonia is converted into urea before excretion ureotelic animals). Birds and reptiles, by contrast, form uric acid, which is mainly excreted as a solid in order to save water uricotelic animals). 

Although terrestrial cyanobacteria are well-recognized producers of a wide range of bioactive compounds, marine species have received less attention until recently [159]. One of the most abundant and studied marine cyanobacteria is the pantropic Lyngbya majuscula (Oscillatoriaceae). A prolific producer of metabolites, it has so far yielded more than 110 secondary metabolites including compounds that exhibit antiproliferative, immunosuppressants, antifeedant and molluscidal activities [159,160]. Shallow water varieties of the cyanophyte contain N-substituted amides of 75-methoxytetradec-4E-enoic acid and of 7S-methoxy-9-methylhexa-dec-4 -enoic acid called malyngamides, a sub-class of which contains the 4-methoxy-3-pyrrolin-2-one system [158]. 

Nitrogen Assimilation. Nitrogen assimilation is the uptake and metabolic use of N by plants and soil microbes (Figure 1). Assimilation by the terrestrial ecosystem controls the form of N eventually released into surface waters, as well as affecting the acid-base status of soil and surface waters. 

Nitrification. Nitrification, the oxidation of NH4+ to N03 , is mediated by bacteria and fungi in both the terrestrial and aquatic portions of watersheds. It is an important process in controlling the form of N released to surface waters by watersheds, as well as in controlling the acid-base status of surface waters (Figure 1). Nitrification is a strongly acidifying process, producing 2 moles of H for each mole of N (NH4+) nitrified. 

---