Chin J Plant Ecol ›› 2016, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (4): 395-404.DOI: 10.17521/cjpe.2015.0147

Special Issue: 遥感生态学

• Research Articles • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Current forest carbon stocks and carbon sequestration potential in Anhui Province, China

Yu-He JI1,2, Ke GUO1,*(), Jian NI3, Xiao-Niu XU4, Zhi-Gao WANG5, Shu-Dong WANG6   

  1. 1State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China

    2Chinese Academy of Meteorological Science, Beijing 100081, China

    3State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China

    4School of Forestry & Landscape Architecture, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China

    5Department of Life Science, Anqing Normal University, Anqing, Anhui 246133, China
    and
    6State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  • Received:2015-04-21 Accepted:2015-08-13 Online:2016-04-29 Published:2016-04-30
  • Contact: Ke GUO

Abstract:

Aims
This study was conducted to investigate carbon stocks in forest ecosystems of different stand ages in Anhui Province, and to identify the carbon sequestration potential of climax forests controlled by the natural environment conditions.
Methods
Data were collected based on field investigations and simulations were made with the BIOME4 carbon cycle model.
Important findings
Currently, the total forest carbon stocks in Anhui Province amounts to 714.5 Tg C: 402.1 Tg C in vegetation and 312.4 Tg C in soil. Generally, both the total and vegetation carbon density exhibit an increasing trend with the natural growth of forest stands. Soil carbon density increases from young to near mature forests, and then gradually decreases thereafter. Young and middle-aged forests account for 75% of the total forest area in Anhui Province, with potentially an additional 125.4 Tg C to be gained after the young and middle-aged forests reach near mature stage. Results of BIOME4 simulations show that potentially an additional 245.7 Tg C, including 153.7 Tg C in vegetation and 92 Tg C in soil, could be gained if the current forests are transformed into climax forest ecosystems in Anhui Province.

http://jtp.cnki.net/bilingual/detail/html/ZWSB201604012

Key words: carbon sequestration, climax forest communities, soil carbon density, soil carbon stocks, vegetation carbon density, vegetation carbon stocks