The vog (volcanic fog) damages the respitory function in plants and animals by chemical burn. Sulfer dioxide gas, which is the primary component of the current volcanic emissions from the Hale'mau'mau vent of Kilauea volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii, combines easily with water and creates sulferic acid. In plants and animals, the sulfer dioxide combines with water within the respitory tissues (in animals: the nose, mouth, throat, windpipe, and lungs) burning from the inside. Most days we can work outside for a couple of hours at a time, but some days the vog is so thick (like yesterday) that being outside for more than 5 minutes at a time is difficult. The throat and eyes start to burn, and breathing becomes labored. Being "inside" only offers some protection. Home construction in Hawaii is very light, due to the comfortable year-round climate, and there is very rarely any air conditioning, so being inside only reduces the exposure. After several months of this stuff, the air isn't much different in the house, but it does help when a thick patch blows by.

Since the beginning of the current eruption of sulfer dioxide from the Hale'mau'mau vent in late March of this year, the southern half of the Big Island of Hawaii has been veiled in vog. Very similar to the effect of a large forest wildfire, the vog reduces visibility considerably and creates a graying haze over the landscape.

We learned today that a new vent has opened, releasing a lava fountain 40 feet into the air, at first, but now just adding to the sulfer dioxide output. Today we will assess the damage done by yesterday's acid rain at the end of the day. We can allready tell that the plants suffered new burns, but things will have to dry off a bit before we can really tell.

Labels: Hawaii, Vog

link | posted by Reese at 10:57 AM

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