ABSTRACT
Consideration of the economic impact of environmental degradation provides additional justification for stewardship that imposes regulation and operational costs to aid remediation measures. The assessment of the economic impact of an ecological stressor within a geographic region requires knowledge of the distribution of vulnerable receptors within the region, determination of appropriate spatial and temporal resolution of the stressor, and information about the exposure and effect relationship. The increases in the surface flux of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation due to decreasing stratospheric ozone are a stressor for numerous plant species, including the commercially important loblolly pine (Pinus taeda). The extent of species range and biomass of loblolly pine can be estimated for the Middle Atlantic area from U.S. Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data. An empirical exposure and effect function may then be applied to approximate biomass reduction and economic impact in a single-stressor perturbation scenario.
