The National Atmospheric Deposition Program (nadp)

The NADP has had three objectives during its existence: 1.to characterize geographic patterns and temporal trends in chemical or biological atmospheric (wet and dry) deposition and 3.to support education and outreach through the development of informational materials and programs aimed at people of all ages. To achieve these objectives, NADP provides timely deliverables free of charge. Scientists, educators, students, policy-makers, and others are encouraged to access data from the NADP website (http://nadp.isws.illinois.edu/). This site offers on-line retrieval of individual data points, seasonal and annual averages, trend plots, concentration and deposition maps, reports, manuals, educational brochures, and other information about NRSP-3. Quality-assured data and information from all networks are loaded quarterly into the on-line database system with a lag of ~180 days. Information available from this website and linked database
management system constitute the deliverables that support the project objectives. NADP also addresses special request data products, answers scientific questions, and assists users to find related information. Complementing the on-line data and information are publications such as annual data summaries, annual meeting proceedings and presentations, quality assurance documents (e.g., quality management plans), manuals, informational and educational brochures, and reports. All publications are available online (nadp.isws.illinois.edu/lib/). Project Assessment and Revision of Objectives: In order to assess the type and amount of research activity supported by NRSP-3, participants are asked to report their program activities and publications that use NADP data annually. Additionally information is obtained from online literature repositories to locate all publications that reference or use NADP data, maps, and other information. These
are summarized annual and provided on the NADP website ( http://nadp.isws.illinois.edu/lib/bibliography.aspx). More than ~95% of these publications are peer-reviewed journal articles and reports, including theses and dissertations. The balance includes informational pieces, such as newspaper articles and other news reports. Over the last three complete years (2010-2012), publications listed have numbered 146, 172, and 170 publications, respectively. This demonstrates that NRSP-3 is achieving the primary function of NRSPs, namely to support research (and NADPs Objective #2). Objective (1) was changed during the 2002-06 funding period to chemical or biological atmospheric (wet and dry) deposition. This objective now explicitly mentions wet and dry deposition, including the (biological) deposition of plant pathogens, such as ASR spores. Current networks to measure air concentrations of ammonia and mercury make
possible the estimation of dry deposition fluxes, building new research support capacity. Research activities under objective (2) were amended to address emerging interest in critical loads and the health and safety of the nations food supply. Including the health of food supplies embraces the work being done to understand mercury sources that have led to advisories in 49 states to limit fish consumption, and also embraces the work being done to track SBR, a disease that can drastically reduce yields in unprotected soybean crops. Objective (3) articulates what is already being done (see summary in Integration and Documentation of Research Support). These points show that the NRSP-3 is adjusting to our current understanding and adapting to new needs (e.g., ambient ammonia monitoring, ASR pathogen transport, radioactive fallout from Fukushima, and related studies.). 2.to support research activities related to: (a) the productivity of managed and natural ecosystems (b) the chemistry
of surface and ground waters, including estuaries (c) critical loads in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and (e) source-receptor relationships