As Canada experiences record snowfall, new research from the Cheriton School of Computer Science suggests that tiny amounts of industrial pollution trapped in snow can change how sunlight reaches the ground below and significantly alter fragile environments.
The culprit is black carbon, a sooty form of pollution produced when fossil fuels burn incompletely. It can come from vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions and other combustion sources. While black carbon is already known to contribute to warming, the Waterloo research highlights another, less visible effect: how it alters the “light environment” under snow in ways that affect plant growth.
Even at the height of winter, some sunlight is transmitted through snow and reaches soil, seeds and vegetation beneath. Snow doesn’t let all light through equally. As it propagates certain wavelengths of light and absorbs others that are vital for biological processes, like seed germination, cold activation tolerance and chlorophyll production, it can affect the development of vegetation that’s just below the snow. Conversely, snow reflects light at specific wavelengths that can actually disrupt plant dormancy and stimulate stem growth, influencing how higher plants develop.
“Our research indicates that black carbon can have a significant effect on vegetation growth patterns even when there are only a few parts per billion in snow,” said Dr. Gladimir Baranoski, a professor of computer science at the University of Waterloo. “It can alter which wavelengths of light make it through snow, throwing off finely tuned natural cycles.”
Read the full story on Waterloo News.