Search

There are close links between solar UV radiation, climate change, and plastic pollution. UV-driven weathering is a key process leading to the degradation of plastics in the environment but also the formation of potentially harmful plastic fragments such as micro- and nanoplastic particles. Estimates of the environmental persistence of plastic pollution, and the formation of fragments, will need to take in account plastic dispersal around the globe, as well as projected UV radiation levels and climate change factors.image

This Assessment Update by the Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) considers the interactive effects of solar UV radiation, global warming, and other weathering factors on plastics. The Assessment illustrates the significance of solar UV radiation in decreasing the durability of plastic materials, degradation of plastic debris, formation of micro- and nanoplastic particles and accompanying leaching of potential toxic compounds. Micro- and nanoplastics have been found in all ecosystems, the atmosphere, and in humans. While the potential biological risks are not yet well-established, the widespread and increasing occurrence of plastic pollution is reason for continuing research and monitoring. Plastic debris persists after its intended life in soils, water bodies and the atmosphere as well as in living organisms. To counteract accumulation of plastics in the environment, the lifetime of novel plastics or plastic alternatives should better match the functional life of products, with eventual breakdown releasing harmless substances to the environment.

There are close links between solar UV radiation, climate change, and plastic pollution. UV-driven weathering is a key process leading to the degradation of plastics in the environment but also the formation of potentially harmful plastic fragments such as micro- and nanoplastic particles. Estimates of the environmental persistence of plastic pollution, and the formation of fragments, will need to take in account plastic dispersal around the globe, as well as projected UV radiation levels and climate change factors.

This Assessment Update by the Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) considers the interactive effects of solar UV radiation, global warming, and other weathering factors on plastics. The Assessment illustrates the significance of solar UV radiation in decreasing the durability of plastic materials, degradation of plastic debris, formation of micro- and nanoplastic particles and accompanying leaching of potential toxic compounds. Micro- and nanoplastics have been found in all ecosystems, the atmosphere, and in humans. While the potential biological risks are not yet well-established, the widespread and increasing occurrence of plastic pollution is reason for continuing research and monitoring. Plastic debris persists after its intended life in soils, water bodies and the atmosphere as well as in living organisms. To counteract accumulation of plastics in the environment, the lifetime of novel plastics or plastic alternatives should better match the functional life of products, with eventual breakdown releasing harmless substances to the environment.

This Assessment Update by the Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) considers the interactive effects of solar UV radiation, global warming, and other weathering factors on plastics. The Assessment illustrates the significance of solar UV radiation in decreasing the durability of plastic materials, degradation of plastic debris, formation of micro- and nanoplastic particles and accompanying leaching of potential toxic compounds. Micro- and nanoplastics have been found in all ecosystems, the atmosphere, and in humans. While the potential biological risks are not yet well-established, the widespread and increasing occurrence of plastic pollution is reason for continuing research and monitoring. Plastic debris persists after its intended life in soils, water bodies and the atmosphere as well as in living organisms. To counteract accumulation of plastics in the environment, the lifetime of novel plastics or plastic alternatives should better match the functional life of products, with eventual breakdown releasing harmless substances to the environment.

Evergreen plants growing at high latitudes or high elevations may experience freezing events in their photosynthetic tissues. Freezing events can have physical and physiological effects on the leaves which alter leaf optical properties affecting remote and proximal sensing parameters. We froze leaves of six alpine plant species (Soldanella alpina, Ranunculus kuepferi, Luzula nutans, Gentiana acaulis, Geum montanum, and Centaurea uniflora) and three evergreen forest understorey species (Hepatica nobilis, Fragaria vesca and Oxalis acetosella), and assessed their spectral transmittance and optically measured pigments, as well as photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (PSII) as an indicator of freezing damage. Upon freezing, leaves of all the species transmitted more photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and some species had increased ultraviolet-A (UV-A) transmittance. These differences were less pronounced in alpine than in understorey species, which may be related to higher chlorophyll degradation, visible as reduced leaf chlorophyll content upon freezing in the latter species. Among these understorey forbs, the thin leaves of O. acetosella displayed the largest reduction in chlorophyll (-79%). This study provides insights into how freezing changes the leaf optical properties of wild plants which could be used to set a baseline for upscaling optical reflectance data from remote sensing. Changes in leaf transmittance may also serve to indicate photosynthetic sufficiency and physiological tolerance of freezing events, but experimental research is required to establish this functional association.

This assessment, by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP), one of three Panels informing the Parties to the Montreal Protocol, provides an update, since our previous extensive assessment (Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2019, 18, 595–828), of recent findings of current and projected interactive environmental effects of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, stratospheric ozone, and climate change. These effects include those on human health, air quality, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, biogeochemical cycles, and materials used in construction and other services. The present update evaluates further evidence of the consequences of human activity on climate change that are altering the exposure of organisms and ecosystems to UV radiation. This in turn reveals the interactive effects of many climate change factors with UV radiation that have implications for the atmosphere, feedbacks, contaminant fate and transport, organismal responses, and many outdoor materials including plastics, wood, and fabrics. The universal ratification of the Montreal Protocol, signed by 197 countries, has led to the regulation and phase-out of chemicals that deplete the stratospheric ozone layer. Although this treaty has had unprecedented success in protecting the ozone layer, and hence all life on Earth from damaging UV radiation, it is also making a substantial contribution to reducing climate warming because many of the chemicals under this treaty are greenhouse gases.

Executive Summary: Thirty-four years ago, an unprecedented thinning of stratospheric ozone was reported over Antarctica.The risk of a consequent increase in exposure to solar UV-B radiation (UV-B; wavelengths 280-315 nm) raised concerns about potentially disastrous effects on human health and the Earth's environment. In response, the international community mobilised and worked together to understand the causes and find a solution to this dramatic change in the Earth's atmosphere. In 1985, the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer was signed, which provided the framework for the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, signed in 1987. In these international agreements, the United Nations recognised the fundamental importance of stopping and reversing ozone depletion and preventing its damaging effects. The Montreal Protocol, with its subsequent Amendments and Adjustments, was negotiated to control the consumption and production of anthropogenic ozone-depleting substances. The Parties to the Montreal Protocol base their decisions on scientific, environmental, technical, and economic information provided by three Assessment Panels ...

Plants perceive ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation through the UV-B photoreceptor UV RESISTANCE LOCUS 8 (UVR8), and initiate regulatory responses via associated signalling networks, gene expression and metabolic pathways. Various regulatory adaptations to UV-B radiation enable plants to harvest information about fluctuations in UV-B irradiance and spectral composition in natural environments, and to defend themselves against UV-B exposure. Given that UVR8 is present across plant organs and tissues, knowledge of the systemic signalling involved in its activation and function throughout the plant is important for understanding the context of specific responses. Fine-scale understanding of both UV-B irradiance and perception within tissues and cells requires improved application of knowledge about UV-attenuation in leaves and canopies, warranting greater consideration when designing experiments. In this context, reciprocal crosstalk among photoreceptor-induced pathways also needs to be considered, as this appears to produce particularly complex patterns of physiological and morphological response. Through crosstalk, plant responses to UV-B radiation go beyond simply UV-protection or amelioration of damage, but may give cross-protection over a suite of environmental stressors. Overall, there is emerging knowledge showing how information captured by UVR8 is used to regulate molecular and physiological processes, although understanding of upscaling to higher levels of organisation, i.e. organisms, canopies and communities remains poor. Achieving this will require further studies using model plant species beyond Arabidopsis, and that represent a broad range of functional types. More attention should also be given to plants in natural environments in all their complexity, as such studies are needed to acquire an improved understanding of the impact of climate change in the context of plant-UV responses. Furthermore, broadening the scope of experiments into the regulation of pla, Funding Agencies:Academy of Finland 304519 266523 Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad of Spain (MINECO) Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) CGL2014-54127-P Polish National Science Centre UMO-2016/22/E/NZ3/00326 UMO-2017/25/B/NZ3/01080 UV4Plants Doctoral Programme in Plant Science of the University of Helsinki Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) 359552155 Region Haute-Normandie GRR-TERA SCALE, UFOSE Project Ghent University Research Foundation Flanders (FWO) G000515N Science Foundation Ireland 16-IA-4418

Changes in stratospheric ozone and climate over the past 40-plus years have altered the solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation conditions at the Earth's surface. Ozone depletion has also contributed to climate change across the Southern Hemisphere. These changes are interacting in complex ways to affect human health, food and water security, and ecosystem services. Many adverse effects of high UV exposure have been avoided thanks to the Montreal Protocol with its Amendments and Adjustments, which have effectively controlled the production and use of ozone-depleting substances. This international treaty has also played an important role in mitigating climate change. Climate change is modifying UV exposure and affecting how people and ecosystems respond to UV; these effects will become more pronounced in the future. The interactions between stratospheric ozone, climate and UV radiation will therefore shift over time; however, the Montreal Protocol will continue to have far-reaching benefits for human well-being and environmental sustainability.

Exposure of plants and animals to ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B; 280-315 nm) is modified by stratospheric ozone dynamics and climate change. Even though stabilisation and projected recovery of stratospheric ozone is expected to curtail future increases in UV-B radiation at the Earth's surface, on-going changes in climate are increasingly exposing plants and animals to novel combinations of UV-B radiation and other climate change factors (e.g., ultraviolet-A and visible radiation, water availability, temperature and elevated carbon dioxide). Climate change is also shifting vegetation cover, geographic ranges of species, and seasonal timing of development, which further modifies exposure to UV-B radiation. Since our last assessment, there has been increased understanding of the underlying mechanisms by which plants perceive UV-B radiation, eliciting changes in growth, development and tolerances of abiotic and biotic factors. However, major questions remain on how UV-B radiation is interacting with other climate change factors to modify the production and quality of crops, as well as important ecosystem processes such as plant and animal competition, pest-pathogen interactions, and the decomposition of dead plant matter (litter). In addition, stratospheric ozone depletion is directly contributing to climate change in the southern hemisphere, such that terrestrial ecosystems in this region are being exposed to altered patterns of precipitation, temperature and fire regimes as well as UV-B radiation. These ozone-driven changes in climate have been implicated in both increases and reductions in the growth, survival and reproduction of plants and animals in Antarctica, South America and New Zealand. In this assessment, we summarise advances in our knowledge of these and other linkages and effects, and identify uncertainties and knowledge gaps that limit our ability to fully evaluate the ecological consequences of these environmental changes on terrestrial ecosystems.

Subalpine grasslands are highly seasonal environments and likely subject to strong variability in nitrogen (N) dynamics. Plants and microbes typically compete for N acquisition during the growing season and particularly at plant peak biomass. During snowmelt, plants could potentially benefit from a decrease in competition by microbes, leading to greater plant N uptake associated with active growth and freeze-thaw cycles restricting microbial growth. In managed subalpine grasslands, we expect these interactions to be influenced by recent changes in agricultural land use, and associated modifications in plant and microbial communities. At several subalpine grasslands in the French Alps, we added pulses of 15N to the soil at the end of snowmelt, allowing us to compare the dynamics of inorganic N uptake in plants and microbes during this period with that previously reported at the peak biomass in July. In all grasslands, while specific shoot N translocation (per g of biomass) of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) was two to five times greater at snowmelt than at peak biomass, specific microbial DIN uptakes were similar between the two sampling dates. On an area basis, plant communities took more DIN than microbial communities at the end of snowmelt when aboveground plant biomasses were at least two times lower than at peak biomass. Consequently, inorganic N partitioning after snowmelt switches in favor of plant communities, allowing them to support their growing capacities at this period of the year. Seasonal differences in microbial and plant inorganic N-related dynamics were also affected by past (terraced vs. unterraced) rather than current (mown vs. unmown) land use. In terraced grasslands, microbial biomass N remained similar across seasons, whereas in unterraced grasslands, microbial biomass N was higher and microbial C : N lower at the end of snowmelt as compared to peak biomass. Further investigations on microbial community composition and their organic N uptake

The writing of this handbook started 14 months ago and is the results of the work of six editors and sixteen authors. This version is a preprint prepared for the participants in the 2012 training school of the COST action 5 FA0906 ‘UV4growth’ at University of Málaga. We hope that you find the handbook useful, and that you will alert us of errors, and of difficult to understand sections or paragraphs. Please, send all such comments to mailto:pedro.aphalo@helsinki.fi?subject=TG1HandbookPre01feedback indicating page and line numbers. Many thanks for your help., Finansierad av EU COST action FA0906 "UV4growth"University of Helsinki, Department of Biosciences, Division of Plant Biology, Helsinki, Finland, UV responses and signal transductory events in plants