Dual stable isotopic analysis of nitrogen and oxygen to evaluate sources and sinks of atmospheric anthropogenic nitrate in the Colorado Desert

Industrial, automotive, and agricultural emissions release nitrogen into the atmosphere which is subsequently deposited to the surrounding terrestrial ecosystem. The Colorado Desert is impacted by nitrogen deposition from the west due to inputs from the Los Angeles air basin as well as nearby sources from agriculture in the Coachella Valley (CV). Current research within the Colorado Desert has demonstrated that anthropogenic N deposition contributes to the increased biomass of exotic invasive grasses, which compete with native species and can create enough biomass to carry fire in areas of high deposition. To measure the anthropogenic nitrogen within the CV, an array of passive air samplers was erected spanning the valley from west to east. Each sampler contained filters to passively collect both nitric acid and ammonia ions. To evaluate the degree to which the local ecosystem is supplemented by atmospheric N and determine how nitrogen pools are transformed, surface soil and leaf tissue of the dominant shrub, Larrea tridentata, were collected at each site. Only nitrate data from the samplers has currently been analyzed. δ15N, δ17O, and δ18O were obtained from atmospheric and 1M KCl soil extracts using dual isotopic analysis of NO3-. δ15N of vegetation was obtained through combustion of dried leaf tissue. The highest concentrations of atmospheric nitrate are located on the western edge of the desert in the direction toward Los Angeles, and there is also high nitrate near the Salton Sea. The isoscape produced by the isotopic analysis provides a map further describing how NO3- molecules are moving through the desert. This map shows which sources are influencing deposition sinks across the valley. Soil concentrations of nitrogen increase along the same gradient and have an inverse relationship with δ15N. Plant tissue is also less enriched in δ15N at high deposition sites, which correlates with soil values and may be caused by increased fractionation of nitrogen isotopes at high concentrations of soil N. These results advance our understanding of how nitrogen deposition is affecting the desert ecosystem. Establishing where atmospheric nitrogen originates and where it is eventually deposited will assist policymakers in regulating local emission sources.