The mission of the USDA-ARS Air Quality-Plant Growth and Development Research Unit at Raleigh, NC is to assess the effects of the changing atmospheric environment on crop production and plant health and to develop techniques for mitigating the problems. The current objectives are to determine the effects of two atmospheric gases involved in global climate change [e.g., carbon dioxide and tropospheric ozone] on crop systems. The effects of these gases will be studied individually, in combination, and in interaction with other factors associated with changes in global climate. Research is conducted under field, greenhouse, phytotron, and laboratory conditions. Current research includes: -determination of interactions of ozone and elevated carbon dioxide on plant physiology, growth, and yield , -examination of ozone and carbon dioxide effects on plant-pathogen/pest associations and rhizosphere ecology, -determining mechanisms of action of air pollutants and establishing physiological and biochemical mechanisms of resistance, -development of ozone-resistant plant cultivars, and -application of environmental, physiological, and growth data in crop growth simulation models for evaluation of air quality impacts on crop production. Website: "http://www.aqpgdr.saa.ars.usda.gov/" [Summary provided by the USDA.]
USDA/ARS/AQPGDRU
USDA