Forest Carbon

Carbon stocks in managed forests of Ontario, Canada, and in harvested wood products originated from these forests were estimated for 2010–2100. Simulations included four future forest harvesting scenarios based on historical harvesting levels (low, average, high, and maximum available) and a no-harvest scenario. In four harvesting scenarios, forest carbon stocks in Ontario’s managed forest were estimated to range from 6202 to 6227 Mt C (millions of tons of carbon) in 2010, and from 6121 to  6428 Mt C by 2100. Inclusion of carbon stored in harvested wood products in use and in landfills changed the projected range in 2100 to 6710–6742 Mt C. For the no-harvest scenario, forest carbon stocks were projected to change from 6246 Mt C in 2010 to 6680 Mt C in 2100. Spatial variation in projected forest carbon stocks was strongly related to changes in forest age (r = 0.603), but had weak correlation with harvesting rates. For all managed forests in Ontario combined, projected carbon stocks in combined forest and harvested wood products converged to within 2% difference by 2100. The results suggest that harvesting in the boreal forest, if applied within limits of sustainable forest management, will eventually have a relatively small effect on long-term combined forest and wood products carbon stocks. However, there was a large time lag to approach carbon equality,  with more than 90 years with a net reduction in stored carbon in harvested forests plus wood products compared to nonharvested boreal forest which also has low rates of natural disturbance. The eventual near equivalency of carbon stocks in nonharvested forest and forest that is harvested and protected from natural disturbance. reflects both the accumulation of carbon in harvested wood products and the relatively young age at which boreal forest stands undergo natural succession in the absence of disturbance.

Forest harvest for bioenergy is not immediately carbon neutral, since combustion of forest biomass adds CO2 to the atmosphere, which is not replaced by regrowth for many decades. Selecting the best mitigation option among forest utilization scenarios requires an assessment of all carbon stocks and GHG emissions over time for each option. Trade-offs between forest carbon stocks and bioenergy are significant. Understanding these trade-offs will become increasingly important under proposed cap and trade regulations where equal value is given to mitigating GHG emissions by reducing fossil fuel use and increasing ecosystem carbon stocks. Maximizing emissions reductions for forest bioenergy requires selection of a reference forest state that takes into account the most likely fate of the forest had there been no bioenergy project. Broader sustainability issues (e.g., ecological sustainability, economics), of which climate change mitigation is only one, must be balanced in guiding decisions about harvest of forests.

Internationally funded carbon forestry projects have become a central concern of scholars and policy makers working on global climate change mitigation. The anticipated impacts of carbon forestry projects on forest-dependent communities have been debated in terms of normative concerns of equity and justice. We offer a positive and arguably more robust theoretical argument supported by case-study evidence to demonstrate that for effective emission reductions, the stakes of local communities must be built into carbon forestry projects. We also contribute new insights and suggest specific institutional mechanisms to restructure the monitoring arrangements for effective and efficient carbon forestry."

Successful efforts of indigenous groups to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD +) will likely vary with how the initiatives are designed and implemented. Whether REDD + initiatives are carried out by national governments or decentralized to sub-national or project-level institutions with a nested approach could be of great consequence. I describe the SuruíForest Carbon Project in Amazonian Brazil, one of the first REDD + pilot projects implemented with indigenous people in the world. I emphasize (1) how enfranchisement of community members in the policy-planning process , fund management, and carbon baseline establishment increased project reliability and equity, and (2) how the project's quality would have likely been diminished if implemented under a centralized REDD + scheme. Policy relevance This article explores a decentralized REDD + intervention established in an indigenous land in Brazil. It expands the theoretical discussions on REDD + governance and highlights how centralized REDD + programmes are likely to be less effective than project-level interventions assisted by NGOs in terms of social benefits and community engagement. Additionally, the case study described can serve as reference for the design of critical social and technical components of REDD + .

This study discusses about the spatial modelling to assess the total carbon stock and amount of Carbon-diOxide sequestrated by forest cover from atmosphere. The software ArcGIS were used to create a spatial model based on modelbuilder utility. The existing regression model and formulas were employed such as above ground biomass, tasselled cap transformation, brightness index, wetness index, below ground biomass, total accumulated biomass, total carbon stock and total carbon di oxide sequestered. These were integrated in model builder utility. Then output toolbox were utilised for further carbon footprint studies.

The challenges that continue to surround the design and implementation of results-based payments in REDD+ have often led project proponents to pursue hybrid approaches, where payment to local people is often coupled with (or replaced by) indirect investments in economic and development activities. The emergence of such approaches bears great importance for the future of REDD+, as it is transforming both the way it is understood conceptually and the way it is implemented on the ground. Accordingly, this paper seeks to investigate whether indirect investments have become core elements of REDD+ projects. In addition, it evaluates whether this shift has been a consequence of path dependence in REDD+ design and implementation. Finally, it tries to analyse some of the key factors and concerns shaping investment in economic and development activities. The results of the study arguably confirm that indirect investments have become as important as results-based payments in REDD+ activities, and that such a trend is the result of a process of cross-fertilization between REDD+ and previous conservation and development efforts, rather than a form of path dependence. At the same time, the study suggests that the effectiveness of indirect investments within REDD+ projects will largely hinge upon project developers avoiding 'one-size-fits-all' approaches and taking the heterogeneity of livelihood portfolios between and within forest communities into account.

The present study was conducted in six traditional agro forestry villages i.e., Budali, Manjakot, Manao, Dungripanth, Chamdaar and Keshu to estimate structure and carbon sequestration potential of traditional agroforestry villages. Among the traditional agroforestry system, majority of villages were dominated by Grewia oppositifolia followed by Toona ciliata. Among the traditional agroforestry system the highest carbon stock was reported 57.45 t/ha in village Chamdaare and lowest (19.85 t/ha) in the vilage Manjakot. The values of total carbon in other villages were 34.98 t/ha in Budali, 31.47 t/ha in Dungripanth, 30.64 t/ha in Keshu and 20.94 t/ha in Manao. The soil organic carbon was highest (146.88±0.74 t/ha) in the village Budali and lowest (12.78±0.67 t/ha) in the village Keshu. In the traditional agroforestry system the average total carbon stock in trees was 32.56 t /ha, whereas the average soil carbon was 56.74 t/ha.

In the tropics, shifting cultivation has long been attributed to large scale forest degradation, and remains a major source of uncertainty in forest carbon accounting. In the Philippines, shifting cultivation, locally known as kaingin, is a major land-use in upland areas. We measured the distribution and recovery of aboveground biomass carbon along a fallow gradient in post-kaingin secondary forests in an upland area in the Philippines. We found significantly higher carbon in the aboveground total biomass and living woody biomass in old-growth forest, while coarse dead wood biomass carbon was higher in the new fallow sites. For young through to the oldest fallow secondary forests, there was a progressive recovery of biomass carbon evident. Multivariate analysis indicates patch size as an influential factor in explaining the variation in biomass carbon recovery in secondary forests after shifting cultivation. Our study indicates secondary forests after shifting cultivation are substantial carbon sinks and that this capacity to store carbon increases with abandonment age. Large trees contribute most to aboveground biomass. A better understanding of the relative contribution of different biomass sources in aboveground total forest biomass, however, is necessary to fully capture the value of such landscapes from forest management, restoration and conservation perspectives.

The term ‘degradation’ is often used in the current discourse on carbon forestry. Tree planting projects primarily aimed at
mitigating climate change frequently claim that they simultaneously reduce degradation. However, despite the centrality
of ‘degradation’ in the forest carbon discourse, reference is rarely made to the significant body of literature questioning
generalizations about degradation in Africa since the mid-1990s. Many studies have exposed biases and problematic
underlying motives in claims of degradation in various African regions. Combining this literature with discourse analysis,
we present a framework for analysing degradation narratives in order to explore the extent to which these are based on
evidence or opinion. We acknowledge that environmental change is complex, and increasingly so today in the face of
climate change, and we stress that narratives cannot be pinned down as ‘true or false’. However, unconfirmed ‘truths’
about degradation being acute have resulted in significant, costly and far-reaching actions to halt it. Thus there is a need
to scrutinize the empirical evidence using the best available knowledge. Our framework, designed to be easily applicable
for practitioners, could facilitate increased engagement with and scrutiny of degradation claims in forest carbon interventions.

This research was examine the potential for carbon stock and other ecosystem services of Gunung Bondang Protection Forest in Murung Raya Regency, Central Kalimantan. The study focuses on potential carbon and ecosystem services in the form of CO2 sequestration and O2 production the Gunung Bondang Protected Forest area.The study was conducted non-destructively using the parameters of the diameter and total height of the tree. The results showed the composition of the tree species was dominated by Dipterocarpaceae family, the potential biomass was 624.86 tons/ha, the potential C was 293.68 tons/ha and the potential of environmental services in the form of CO2 absorbed was 1,077.83 tons/ha and the production O2 was 786.81 tons/ha. Moreover, these result show the strong relevance of the Gunung Bondang Protection Forest for climate change mitigation. The protection and restoration of degraded forest parts contribute to the climate mitigation goals set by the Indonesian government, and the issuance of Carbon credits will be an important financial incentive for sustainable forest management and conservation.

The evaluation of the future dynamics of deforestation is essential to creating the basis for the effective implementation of REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) initiatives. Such evaluation is often a challenging task, especially for countries that have to cope with a critical lack of data and capacities, higher uncertainties, and competing interests. We present a new modeling approach that makes use of available and easily accessible data sources to predict the spatial location of future deforestation. This approach is based on the Random Forest algorithm, which is a machine learning technique that enables evidence-based, data-driven decisions and is therefore often used in decision-making processes. Our objective is to provide a straightforward modeling approach that, without requiring cost-intensive assessments, can be applied in the early stages of REDD+, for a stepwise implementation approach of REDD+ projects in regions with limited availability of data, capital, technical infrastructure, or human capacities. The presented model focuses on building business-as-usual scenarios to identify and rank potentially suitable areas for REDD+ interventions. For validation purposes we applied the model to data from Nicaragua.

"The Boreal Campaign initiated by environmental non-governmental organizations has resulted in a number of public statements about detrimental effects of harvesting on boreal forest carbon stocks. These statements are examined in the context of Ontario’s boreal forest. A review of scientific literature and the results of the authors’ original work on forest carbon demonstrate that these statements are based on either incomplete or inaccurate use of published scientific information. We conclude that forest management in Ontario, as governed by the Crown Forest Sustainability Act, increases total boreal forest carbon stock over the long term and that these conclusions are likely applicable to other jurisdictions where boreal forests are managed sustainably."

"Minimum break-even and carbon-neutral periods resulting from displacing coal with wood pellets for energy generation at the Atikokan Generating Station (GS) were estimated using forest resource inventory for four forest management units (FMU) in northwestern Ontario. The break-even period was defined as the time since harvest at which the combined greenhouse gas (GHG) benefit of displacing coal with wood pellets and the amount of carbon in the regenerating forest equalled the amount of carbon in the forest had it not been harvested for wood pellets. The carbon-neutral period was defined as the time since harvest at which the amount of carbon in the regenerating forest equalled the amount of carbon in the forest had it not been harvested for wood pellets. Theoretically achievable minimum break-even and carbon-neutral periods were estimated as equal to 18 and 28 years after harvest, respectively. However, for the current forest age structure in the selected FMUs, production of wood pellets required for operation of the Atikokan GS would result in a minimum break-even period of 32 years after harvest. These results must be treated as optimistic since we assumed that all forest was available for harvest for wood pellet production, applied the “best” post-harvest silvicultural regime, and may have underestimated merchantable volume and total carbon stocks in older stands."

We examined eight green leaf traits (leaf area, specific leaf area, leaf dry matter, leaf water content, leaf carbon, nitrogen, phosphorous, and chlorophyll) and eight litter traits (cellulose, lignin, litter carbon, nitrogen, phosphorous , lignin: nitrogen, carbon: nitrogen and ash content) and the litter decomposition rates of 10 tree species from a temperate forest ecosystem. Amongst all green leaf and litter traits tested, cellulose content, lignin content and specific leaf area were identified as the best predictors of litter decomposition, with percentage contributions to litter decomposition of 40%, 36% and 8%, respectively. The results indicated that litter decomposition in the temperate forest ecosystem studied was not dependent solely on litter traits, as green leaf traits also contributed to nutrient cycling. Individual green leaf traits of living species and dead leaf characteristics both influenced the fate of leaves, affecting decomposition and nutrient and carbon cycling in the forest ecosystem. For a better overall understanding of the decomposition mechanisms operating in a temperate forest, both green leaf traits and litter traits thus need to be considered.

For the main tree species in North America, Europe, and Japan, a number of thousands of allometric equations for single-tree biomass estimation using mostly tree height and stem diameter at breast height are designed. An innovative airborne laser method of the forest canopy sensing allows to process online a number of morphological indices of trees, to combine them with the biomass allometric models, and to evaluate the forest carbon pools. The database of 28 wood and shrub species containing 2.4 thousand of definitions is compiled for the first time in the forests of Eurasia, and on its basis the allometric transcontinental models of fractional structure of biomass of two types and dual use are developed. The first of them include as regressors the tree height and crown diameter and are intended for airborne laser location, whereas the latter have a traditional appointment for terrestrial forest biomass taxation using tree height and stem diameter. It is found that the explanatory capacity of the first model in comparison with the second one for foliage, branches, and roots is lower, but this difference is not statistically significant. The same capacity for the stem and aboveground biomass is lower too but this difference is statistically significant. Both models are designed for two different methods of taxation and cannot replace one another. Natural Resource Modeling. 2018;e12187. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/nrm

Minimum break-even and carbon-neutral periods resulting from displacing coal with wood pellets for energy generation at the Atikokan Generating Station (GS) were estimated using forest resource inventory for four forest management units (FMU) in northwestern Ontario. The break-even period was defined as the time since harvest at which the combined greenhouse gas (GHG) benefit of displacing coal with wood pellets and the amount of carbon in the regenerating forest equalled the amount of carbon in the forest had it not been harvested for wood pellets. The carbon-neutral period was defined as the time since harvest at which the amount of carbon in the regenerating forest equalled the amount of carbon in the forest had it not been harvested for wood pellets. Theoretically achievable minimum break-even and carbon-neutral periods were estimated as equal to 18 and 28 years after harvest, respectively. However, for the current forest age structure in the selected FMUs, production of wood pe...

The present study was conducted in six traditional agro forestry villages i.e., Budali, Manjakot, Manao, Dungripanth, Chamdaar and Keshu to estimate structure and carbon sequestration potential of traditional agroforestry villages. Among the traditional agroforestry system, majority of villages were dominated by Grewia oppositifolia followed by Toona ciliata. Among the traditional agroforestry system the highest carbon stock was reported 57.45 t/ha in village Chamdaare and lowest (19.85 t/ha) in the vilage Manjakot. The values of total carbon in other villages were 34.98 t/ha in Budali, 31.47 t/ha in Dungripanth, 30.64 t/ha in Keshu and 20.94 t/ha in Manao. The soil organic carbon was highest (146.88±0.74 t/ha) in the village Budali and lowest (12.78±0.67 t/ha) in the village Keshu. In the traditional agroforestry system the average total carbon stock in trees was 32.56 t /ha, whereas the average soil carbon was 56.74 t/ha.